Deconvoluting gene and environment interactions to develop an “epigenetic score meter” of disease
Abstract Human health is determined both by genetics (G) and environment (E). This is clearly illustrated in groups of individuals who are exposed to the same environmental factor showing differential responses. A quantitative measure of the gene–environment interactions (GxE) effects has not been d...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Springer Nature
2023-08-01
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| Series: | EMBO Molecular Medicine |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.15252/emmm.202318208 |
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| _version_ | 1846171675008172032 |
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| author | Alessio Butera Lena Smirnova Elisa Ferrando‐May Thomas Hartung Thomas Brunner Marcel Leist Ivano Amelio |
| author_facet | Alessio Butera Lena Smirnova Elisa Ferrando‐May Thomas Hartung Thomas Brunner Marcel Leist Ivano Amelio |
| author_sort | Alessio Butera |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Human health is determined both by genetics (G) and environment (E). This is clearly illustrated in groups of individuals who are exposed to the same environmental factor showing differential responses. A quantitative measure of the gene–environment interactions (GxE) effects has not been developed and in some instances, a clear consensus on the concept has not even been reached; for example, whether cancer is predominantly emerging from “bad luck” or “bad lifestyle” is still debated. In this article, we provide a panel of examples of GxE interaction as drivers of pathogenesis. We highlight how epigenetic regulations can represent a common connecting aspect of the molecular bases. Our argument converges on the concept that the GxE is recorded in the cellular epigenome, which might represent the key to deconvolute these multidimensional intricated layers of regulation. Developing a key to decode this epigenetic information would provide quantitative measures of disease risk. Analogously to the epigenetic clock introduced to estimate biological age, we provocatively propose the theoretical concept of an “epigenetic score‐meter” to estimate disease risk. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7fcae32543ce44f0b3f646c324ba17f9 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1757-4676 1757-4684 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | Springer Nature |
| record_format | Article |
| series | EMBO Molecular Medicine |
| spelling | doaj-art-7fcae32543ce44f0b3f646c324ba17f92024-11-10T12:37:47ZengSpringer NatureEMBO Molecular Medicine1757-46761757-46842023-08-011591610.15252/emmm.202318208Deconvoluting gene and environment interactions to develop an “epigenetic score meter” of diseaseAlessio Butera0Lena Smirnova1Elisa Ferrando‐May2Thomas Hartung3Thomas Brunner4Marcel Leist5Ivano Amelio6Chair for Systems Toxicology, University of KonstanzCenter for Alternatives to Animal Testing, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins UniversityDeutsches Krebsforschungszentrum (DKFZ)Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins UniversityChair for in Biochemical Pharmacology, University of KonstanzChair for in vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Inaugurated by the Doerenkamp‐Zbinden Foundation, University of KonstanzChair for Systems Toxicology, University of KonstanzAbstract Human health is determined both by genetics (G) and environment (E). This is clearly illustrated in groups of individuals who are exposed to the same environmental factor showing differential responses. A quantitative measure of the gene–environment interactions (GxE) effects has not been developed and in some instances, a clear consensus on the concept has not even been reached; for example, whether cancer is predominantly emerging from “bad luck” or “bad lifestyle” is still debated. In this article, we provide a panel of examples of GxE interaction as drivers of pathogenesis. We highlight how epigenetic regulations can represent a common connecting aspect of the molecular bases. Our argument converges on the concept that the GxE is recorded in the cellular epigenome, which might represent the key to deconvolute these multidimensional intricated layers of regulation. Developing a key to decode this epigenetic information would provide quantitative measures of disease risk. Analogously to the epigenetic clock introduced to estimate biological age, we provocatively propose the theoretical concept of an “epigenetic score‐meter” to estimate disease risk.https://doi.org/10.15252/emmm.202318208 |
| spellingShingle | Alessio Butera Lena Smirnova Elisa Ferrando‐May Thomas Hartung Thomas Brunner Marcel Leist Ivano Amelio Deconvoluting gene and environment interactions to develop an “epigenetic score meter” of disease EMBO Molecular Medicine |
| title | Deconvoluting gene and environment interactions to develop an “epigenetic score meter” of disease |
| title_full | Deconvoluting gene and environment interactions to develop an “epigenetic score meter” of disease |
| title_fullStr | Deconvoluting gene and environment interactions to develop an “epigenetic score meter” of disease |
| title_full_unstemmed | Deconvoluting gene and environment interactions to develop an “epigenetic score meter” of disease |
| title_short | Deconvoluting gene and environment interactions to develop an “epigenetic score meter” of disease |
| title_sort | deconvoluting gene and environment interactions to develop an epigenetic score meter of disease |
| url | https://doi.org/10.15252/emmm.202318208 |
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