Lewis Candace R, Olive M Foster
Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA.
Behav Pharmacol. 2014 Sep;25(5-6):341-51. doi: 10.1097/FBP.0000000000000057.
Throughout the 20th century a body of literature concerning the long-lasting effects of the early environment was produced. Adverse experiences in early life, or early-life stress (ELS), is associated with a higher risk of developing various psychiatric illnesses. The mechanisms driving the complex interplay between ELS and adult phenotype has baffled many investigators for decades. Over the last decade, the new field of neuroepigenetics has emerged as one possible mechanism by which ELS can have far-reaching effects on adult phenotype, behavior, and risk for psychiatric illness. Here we review two commonly investigated epigenetic mechanisms, histone modifications and DNA methylation, and the emerging field of neuroepigenetics as they relate to ELS. We discuss the current animal literature demonstrating ELS-induced epigenetic modulation of gene expression that results in altered adult phenotypes. We also briefly discuss other areas in which neuroepigenetics has emerged as a potential mechanism underlying environmental and genetic interactions.
在整个20世纪，出现了一批关于早期环境长期影响的文献。早年的不良经历，即早期生活压力（ELS），与患各种精神疾病的较高风险相关。几十年来，驱动ELS与成年表型之间复杂相互作用的机制一直困扰着许多研究人员。在过去十年中，神经表观遗传学这一新领域已成为一种可能的机制，通过它ELS可对成年表型、行为和精神疾病风险产生深远影响。在此，我们综述两种常用的表观遗传机制，即组蛋白修饰和DNA甲基化，以及与ELS相关的新兴神经表观遗传学领域。我们讨论了当前的动物文献，这些文献表明ELS诱导的基因表达表观遗传调控导致成年表型改变。我们还简要讨论了神经表观遗传学已成为环境与基因相互作用潜在机制的其他领域。
