Environmental Exposures: Impact on the Epigenome
Jaclyn M. Goodrich and Dana C. Dolinoy
from: Epigenetics: Current Research and Emerging Trends (Edited by: Brian P. Chadwick). Caister Academic Press, U.K. (2015) Pages: 327-348.
Abstract
Exposures to environmental toxicants contribute significantly to the global burden of disease and are a prominent public health issue. Environmental toxicants exert their impact on health and disease in part by modifying the epigenome, DNA modifications that do not affect the underlying sequence but can result in altered gene expression and downstream phenotypic changes. While potentially reversible, toxicant-induced epigenetic change at vulnerable lifestages such as embryogenesis and adolescence may have a lasting effect on susceptibility to disease later in life and could even impact subsequent generations. In this chapter, we describe evidence for mitotically-inheritable epigenetic perturbation by toxicants from four chemical classes - heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), and air pollution, a representative exposure mixture - from animal models and epidemiological cohorts. Research addressing mechanisms by which toxicants perturb the epigenome, the biological and functional significance of small epigenetic changes (e.g. DNA methylation, histone modifications, and non-coding RNA expression), and the impact of epigenetic change longitudinally on health outcomes are discussed. The translation of environmental epigenetics research to environmental policy and public health solutions will enhance chemical risk assessment and enable clinicians to identify at-risk populations prior to disease onset read more ...
