Impact of Alcohol Consumption and Old Age Before Conception

New research provides evidence that older age and alcohol consumption in the year leading up to conception could have an impact fetal development by altering a specific gene epigenetically during the development of oocytes (human eggs). // Peter A Jones, senior author, states, "While the outcome of the change isn't clear, our findings give us a valuable look into how environmental factors affect gene regulation through epigenetics and imprinting."

"A better understanding of these complex processes further our understanding of health and disease and -- one day -- may be the foundation for new disease prevention measures."

This study focuses on the nc886 gene which is one of about 100 "imprinted" genes passed from mother to fetus. Imprinted genes retain important chemical tags applied by either the mother or the father before conception. The result is an "epigenetic memory" through which non-genetic information, such as maternal age, may flow directly from parent to offspring. To date, nc886 is the only known imprinted gene that exhibits variation in the likelihood of imprinting based on maternal factors.

Researchers analyzed data from 1,100 mother-child pairs from South Africa and found that imprinting of nc886 was increased in older mothers but decreased in mothers who drank alcohol the year before conception.

Prior research has shown that failure to imprint nc886 was associated with higher body mass in children at five years of age. It has also been linked to increased survival in people with acute myeloid leukemia (an aggressive type of blood cancer) and reduced response to an anti-diabetic drug.

The study gives an insight into the relationship between environmental exposures, genetic regulation and human development, even though it didn’t determine the ultimate physical effects of this change.

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Source-Eurekalert