Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 63110, USA.
Nat Rev Genet. 2013 Sep;14(9):609-17. doi: 10.1038/nrg3543. Epub 2013 Aug 6.
Parent-of-origin effects occur when the phenotypic effect of an allele depends on whether it is inherited from the mother or the father. Several phenomena can cause parent-of-origin effects, but the best characterized is parent-of-origin-dependent gene expression associated with genomic imprinting. The development of new mapping approaches applied to the growing abundance of genomic data has demonstrated that imprinted genes can be important contributors to complex trait variation. Therefore, to understand the genetic architecture and evolution of complex traits, including complex diseases and traits of agricultural importance, it is crucial to account for these parent-of-origin effects. Here, we discuss patterns of phenotypic variation associated with imprinting, evidence supporting its role in complex trait variation and approaches for identifying its molecular signatures.
当等位基因的表型效应取决于它是来自母亲还是父亲时，就会出现亲本来源效应。有几种现象可以导致亲本来源效应，但最具特征的是与基因组印记相关的亲本来源依赖性基因表达。应用于日益丰富的基因组数据的新映射方法的发展表明，印记基因可能是复杂性状变异的重要贡献者。因此，为了了解复杂性状（包括复杂疾病和农业重要性状）的遗传结构和进化，必须考虑这些亲本来源效应。在这里，我们讨论了与印记相关的表型变异模式、支持其在复杂性状变异中作用的证据以及鉴定其分子特征的方法。
