Childhood is a crucial period in the life of any person, but for many it seems that these early experiences could change our organism even at the genetic level. A team of scientists from Northwestern University (USA) has analyzed more than a hundred genes associated with inflammation, looking for signs of epigenetic changes. They found that a handful of genes responsible for regulating inflammation are altered by key events in childhood , suggesting that diseases we suffer from later in life could be the result of events in our own years. formative.
The experts started from the hypothesis that the link between the childhood environment and the differences in the inflammation processes of the body could also reach the genes themselves.
Although the DNA sequence of our genome is more or less centered at conception, we have learned over time that individual genes can continue to be modified through processes that we refer to as epigenetics.
One of the most prominent forms of these epigenetic processes is methylation, which implies that a methyl group (-CH3) is added to the structure of DNA in such a way that it interferes with its function.
Thanks to methylation and other epigenetic changes, we have come to understand that even subtle environmental phenomena can have an impact on our genetic blueprint.
“We could have genes in our body that could lead to some adverse health outcomes, but if those genes are silenced, if they are turned off due to epigenetic processes, that’s an interesting thing,” says Thom McDade, leader of the work.
Although it is relatively early to understand the full range of epigenetic changes that we can experience, childhood is clearly an important part of life that can establish biological processes that can affect our health and well-being for years to come.
This latest study included a sample of about 500 participants from the Philippines, and included a series of data from the early 1980s.
Blood tests revealed that the methylation of 9 of the 114 genes associated with immune processes that regulate inflammation was closely related to several childhood variables, including socioeconomic status, the prolonged absence of a father in childhood and even if the person was born in hot months.
In other words, by identifying certain childhood experiences, the researchers could predict whether one or more of those 9 inflammation genes would be ‘on’ or ‘off’.
This study could help explain the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases and certain inflammatory diseases in specific communities. It also adds to the growing body of evidence that highlights the various ways that changes in our immune systems can affect the way our adult bodies cope with disease.
While we wait for new results in this field, we now have more evidence that reinforces that what happens to us at the beginning of our life can affect us during the rest of it.
Referencia: Social and physical environments early in development predict DNA methylation of inflammatory genes in young adulthood. Thomas W. McDade, 7611–7616, 2017 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences doi: 10.1073/pnas.1620661114
