A team of Japanese scientists recently announced that they had successfully implanted a gene into marmosets that made their skin, hair roots and blood glow green under ultraviolet light.
The scientists implanted a jellyfish gene that leads to the creation of a green fluorescent protein into marmoset embryos. When the baby marmosets were born, four of the five that had been implanted carried the gene. Most significantly, one of those eventually fathered a healthy baby that also carried the green fluorescent gene.
Why, you may wonder, would scientists want to make a glowing green monkey? What possible scientific benefit could that provide?
According to the Reuters/Yahoo News article, this is a potentially huge development in genetic research, with special potential for the medical field. It is the first time that a transgene (a gene from another type of organism) has been successfully passed to the offspring of an implanted animal.
“The birth of this transgenic marmoset baby is undoubtedly a milestone,” stem cell expert Dr. Gerald Schatten, of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and Shoukhrat Mitalipov, of Oregon Health and Sciences University, wrote in a commentary in Nature.
“Transgenic marmosets are potentially useful models for research into infectious diseases, immunology and neurological disorders, for example,” they wrote.
The scientists who successfully implanted the gene are focused on using this new information in research on currently incurable diseases such as Parkinsons disease. See the original article here.
This is just another example of the high degree of commonality in the genes of all living things, and especially between humans and primates. It’s also a great illustration of epigenetics - non-DNA memory in genes plays such an important role in how genetic information is expressed or passed along to offspring.
Scientific research confirming and clarifying the importance of epigenetics in biology - specifically, the passing on of traits to offspring - just keeps coming. A recent study published in The Quarterly Review of Biology (University of Chicago) highlighted over 100 examples of specific animal traits passed to offspring via non-DNA inheritance.
A Current.com post includes selected examples from the study, as well as commentary on the conclusions. Here are a few examples:
Fruit flies exposed to certain chemicals transmit changes—bristly outgrowths on their eyes—down at least 13 generations.
Exposing a pregnant rat to a chemical that alters reproductive hormones leads to generations of sick offspring.
People malnourished in adolescence transmit higher rates of heart disease and diabetes to their children and grandchildren.
In these and 97 other cases the changes in subsequent generations were not from changes in DNA but from epigenetics.
According to the Current.com post, the biggest implication of this new research is that “All the stuff we’re synthesizing and creating from plastics to nanomaterials is going to live in our bodies and take its toll down the generations for a long, long time.”
The “glass-half-full’ flipside to this opinion is epigenetic nutrition: we can identify nutrients and specific foods, used by our ancestors, that meet the needs of our present-day bodies.
Most articles or blogs that discuss “healthy eating” are geared more towards the types of food, necessary nutrients, and different diets or meal plans. But one article on Examiner.com (in the Sacramento edition, by Mykim Tran) takes things one step further: she actually discusses the mechanics of eating.
Mykim suggests eating in moderation, chewing slowly, and not watching television while eating. According to her article, we don’t eat just to survive anymore - we eat for enjoyment, or, conversely, if we’re depressed- and often we eat much more than is necessary.
She suggests chewing more slowly to “taste more of the sweet and delicious favors of the food.” Plus, eating slowly and chewing thoroughly gives the stomach time to realize that it’s full, and helps it digest food more efficiently.
Mykim also recommends not eating while watching television, because “when you watch television, you are focusing on the television and not on what and how much food you are consuming.”
These are some good points to consider - but make sure you’re eating the right foods and paying attention to proper nutrition while you implement these tips.
Back on May 2, we published a post titled “Swine Flu Concerns: Boost Immunity with Genetic Nutrition.” That post discussed how strengthening the immune system through proper nutrition could help people stay more healthy. As it turns out, the CDC has conducted tests that suggest people age 60 and over have increased immunity to the H1N1 virus.
According to a story by the Associated Press today, the new H1N1 virus seems to affect the young at a much higher rate than the elderly - which is in direct contrast to common seasonal flus, that have a much more profound effect on the very old.
Several theories have been presented as to why the new H1N1 seems to not affect the elderly as much. The most common is that flu viruses prior to 1957 affected patients’ immune systems in a similar way to H1N1, which could account for the apparently-increased immunity among the elderly. But scientists and doctors urge older people to “take the same precautions as everyone else.”
Scientists think it’s because older people have been exposed to other viruses in the past that are more similar to swine flu than more recent seasonal flus.
But the results come from complicated lab work and calculations, and it’s not yet clear how safe older people actually are from the new infection, federal officials said.
“We can’t say,” said Dr. Anne Schuchat of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So older people are advised to take the same precautions as their children and grandchildren.
The Associated Press recently published this list of nutrition tips for people with cancer. These are excellent guidelines to keep in mind, and with cancer being so prevalent, odds are most people will have a friend or loved one who could benefit.
A good thing about these tips is that they include several suggestions for dealing with nausea, diarrhea, and other side affects from treatment or the disease itself. Here are a few selections from the list:
- Cancer patients tend to need more protein than healthy people. Peanut butter crackers, yogurt and fruit, a hard-boiled egg and piece of toast all are good mini-meals.
- White, bland foods tend to help with nausea, such as Cream of Wheat, mashed potatoes, cottage cheese.
- Odors often worsen nausea, and foods served at room temperature rather than warm tend to have milder odors.
- Fresh ginger about 30 minutes before eating also can take the edge off nausea, but not ginger flavoring common in many sodas. A study published last week found ginger capsules work, too.
The most important tip in the list is a reminder to tell your doctor about any over-the-counter dietary supplements you may be taking - including EpiGaia. It’s important to consult your physician whenever you are considering taking a supplement, but it is vital for cancer patients due to possible “dangerous interactions with anticancer medications.”
The complete list is available here: if you or someone you know has cancer, take advantage of these tips to make sure you’re getting the nutrition you need.
The LiveScience site has a fantastic overview of epigenetics that was posted about three weeks ago. Epigenetics is a relatively new area of scientific study that has come into focus as a result of the human genome project. As scientists mapped out the genome, they began to see that genes by themselves are not entirely responsible for the growth and development of our bodies. It is the epigenome that helps determine whether a given cell will become part of a big toe, or part of a lung, or what color a person’s eyes will be.
The epigenome doesn’t just affect the body while in the womb, though. According to Liang Liu, a researcher at the University of Alabama at Birmingham who was quoted in the article, “food, pollution, toxic chemicals (such as those found in hard clear plastics), drugs, stress, even exercise and social interaction can all affect the epigenome and alter its attitude towards DNA.”
A key factor that can influence the epigenome and its effect on our genes is food and proper nutrition. In the article, Randy Jirtle, an epigenetics research pioneer at Duke University in North Carolina, makes this point clear:
Similarly, healthy nutrition and lifestyle choices can positively sway gene expression. “Food is truly medicine when you are talking about epigenetic changes,” Jirtle said…
The epigenome’s malleability highlights the power we can have over the health of ourselves and our children, said Jirtle.
Check out the article here for a great overview of epigenetics, and some of the great health benefits associated with this emerging science.
The LA Times reports that last week, “[t]wo federal lawmakers have introduced legislation to require fast-food and other chain restaurants to post calories on menu boards and food display tags.” This bill, known as the MEAL Act (Menu Education and Labeling Act), is designed to “Help consumers make more informed choices.”
The article mentions that the restaurant industry has proposed an alternative bill, known as the LEAN Act (Labeling Education and Nutrition Act), which would only require chains with more than 20 units to implement the new labeling requirements. It would also preempt future state or local regulatory measures.
Both measures are supposed to help consumers make healthier choices. But calling for improved labeling of restaurant food ignores the basic fact that humans aren’t designed to eat burgers and fries. As Dr. Donald Coffey of The Johns Hopkins University puts it, “we were not biologically selected by the evolution process to eat the way we do today, and the damage is manifested.” One clear manifestation is the fact that two-thirds of adult Americans are overweight.
Rather than picking the 500-calorie burger instead of the 750-calorie one, many consumers would be better off focusing on the nutrition their bodies - or, drilling down a little further, their genes - really need. That’s the whole idea behind epigenetic nutrition: helping people obtain the nutrition their genes are designed for.
Not optimal for gene health…(photo by flickr user pointnshoot)
Although the government is working on a vaccination for the current swine flu, it may take up to six months to produce and may only partially reduce the risk of contracting the virus.
Strengthen Your Immune System
Another way to stay generally healthy is by strengthening your immune system. As well as paying attention to your diet and lifestyle, you can also turn to supplements that help support a strong immune system. We recommend natural, whole food nutrient formulas that have ingredients that specifically help with stress and immune function (containing “Hardship Plants”).
“Hardship Plants” Can Boost Immunity
A recurring characteristic of several components in EpiGaia® is the ability to withstand hardship. Studies have shown that many of these ingredients can lead to stronger immune systems and guard against disease. Examples include:
Resveratrol is produced in grape skin in response to environmental challenge.
Oleuropein makes the olive plant robust and resistant to attack.
Gingko Biloba is the oldest known living tree having withstood the ice age.
Several components grow in extreme, harsh climates.
There are more than 10 adaptogen components. Adaptogens enhance the body and mind’s capacity to adapt optimally, accurately and with endurance, to stress.
Results of a ten-year genetic study of Africans was published in the April 30 issue of Science Express. The research team studied DNA from 121 populations of Africans and 60 non-African populations (more than four million genotypes). They discovered that Africans are decended from 14 ancsestral populations. The scientists also revealed that there is more genetic diversity in Africa than anywhere else on the planet.
According to the study (this also squares with the work of Spencer Wells in the Genographic project), the ancestral origin of humans was most likely located in southern Africa, near the South African-Namibian broder.
This study is greater verification that humanity comes from one central location and that our genes evolved throughout our migratory journey - creating different cultures. Although we all look different, our DNA is 99.9% the same as it was during the Paleolithic/hunter-gatherer period. Because our genes have not evolved to thrive on our modern diet, this is the reason why it is so important that our nutrition comes directly from the soils of our ancestors’ migratory paths.
Epigenetic Nutrition: Attaining Natural Good Health through Ancestral Sourced Whole Foods
In This Informative Report, Learn:
Why your health 'blueprint' is stored in your genes
Why certain foods work well for some, but not for others
Why what your ancestors ate could be the key to your health
How to gain access to the most pure nutrients in the world
And much more
EpiGaia® will be released Summer 2009 – by entering your contact information in the form, you will receive the report as well as be the first notified when the product is released to the public.
Results of a 
