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Epigenetics Paper

Epigenetics and How It Can Be Used to Fight Disease

Epigenetics are factors that control whether genes are active or inactive. Every cell in the human body has the same DNA structure, but all have very different functions. This is because some genes are turned on and others are off. For example,  Blood cells and liver cells have different genes turned on and off because they have to perform different functions. If some genes are turned on or off that can lead to diseases that previously had no way to be identified.

Your body controls what genes should be expressed with a chemical known as methyl groups. The methyl groups change the structure and appearance of the DNA, blocking that section from being transcribed. Epigenetics can also be controlled by histone modifications. Histones are proteins that DNA winds around. The histones can constrict the DNA which will prevent the DNA from being transcribed. Gene expression can also be controlled by RNA interference. This modifies the histones around the DNA .

The most common cause of cancer was believed to be mutations in the DNA sequence, but with the epigenetics that theory has changed. Some genes can be activated that cause unregulated growth in cells that lead to cancer. This is the reason why scientist at The Cancer Genome Atlas are looking at normal cells and comparing them to cancer cells to discover the different epigenetic changes that cause cancer. A drug has been created to reactive reproduction controlling genes adding methyl groups to genes that are overactive.

Epigenetics can also be passed down to future generations. Most of the time the epigenome is reset when a cell is copied, but some aspects of the epigenome are passed on to keep cells specialized. When a cell divides there is a finite chance that the cell will receive epigenetic damage. This means that the older someone is the more epigenetic changes they have. This means that the more damage done to a tissue the more the cells have had to divide and the higher chance of epigenetic damage that could cause disease.

This topic was very interesting because it shows that a person’s traits can be turned on and off by the environment. The link to cancer also stresses the importance of understanding how the epigenome works.

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