环境表观遗传学研究进展

Research Progress in Environmental Epigenetics

在许多复杂疾病如肿瘤、心血管系统疾病等的发生发展过程中,遗传学机制和环境因素均发挥着重要的作用。遗传学的核心研究内容集中在基因突变、基因重组等基因序列的改变,而目前的研究发现除基因序列外,还存在着其他一些因素影响着基因的表达。表观遗传学即是研究除基因序列改变之外,基因功能的可逆的、可遗传的改变,主要有DNA甲基化、组蛋白乙酰化、微小RNA等。随着环境医学研究的不断深入,表观遗传的重要作用得以凸显,表观遗传的改变不仅可以解释某些疾病的发病机制,而且还可以作为疾病早期诊断和预防的标志。环境中化学因素、物理因素、生物因素和精神心理以及其他因素的表观遗传学改变已被证实与疾病密切相关,因此了解环境中各种因素的表观遗传效应十分必要。

Both genetic mechanisms and environmental factors play an important role in the development of many complex diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disorders. The core of genetics research focused on the gene mutation, recombination and other changes in gene sequence, while the current study found that except gene sequences, there are also other factors influence gene expression. The epigenetics is focus on the gene function of the reversible, heritable changes, including DNA methylation, histone acetylation, microRNA and so on,rather than changes in gene sequence. With the deepening of environmental medical research, the important role of epigenetics to be highlighted, epigenetic changes can not only explain the pathogenesis of certain diseases, but also as an early diagnosis and preventive signs of disease, epigenetic changes of environmental chemical factors, physical factors, biological factors, psychological and other factors have been convinced closely related with certain disease. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the epigenetic effects of various factors in the environment.