Review
Plant Sciences
Jun-Li Wang, Dong-Wei Di, Pan Luo, Li Zhang, Xiao-Feng Li, Guang-Qin Guo, Lei Wu
Summary: This review focuses on the molecular mechanisms through which epigenetic modifications regulate auxin biosynthesis, demonstrating that complex signaling pathways affect gene expression and subsequently protein production.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Qiong Wu, Anders E. Berglund, Arnold B. Etame
Summary: Glioblastoma is highly resistant to standard therapies and the durability of response to the best chemotherapy agent, Temozolomide, is often short-lived due to tumor resistance. The need for therapies that can provide synergy to chemoradiation is urgent, as adaptive resistance evolution in GBM is facilitated through treatment-induced epigenetic modifications. Understanding and targeting these epigenetic modifications associated with GBM resistance is a top priority.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Arijit Chakraborty, Soma Ghosh, Bratisha Biswas, Sreemanta Pramanik, Jerome Nriagu, Subhamoy Bhowmick
Summary: Arsenic exposure can cause harmful epigenetic alterations, leading to various health complications. This review summarizes the mechanisms underlying arsenic-induced epigenetic changes and proposes therapeutic strategies to alleviate the global burden of arsenic poisoning.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Review
Plant Sciences
Kajal Samantara, Aalok Shiv, Lorenna Lopes de Sousa, Karansher Singh Sandhu, Parichita Priyadarshini, Sourav Ranjan Mohapatra
Summary: Epigenetics is an important mechanism that can help plants cope with various stressors by altering gene expression without involving changes in DNA sequences. It provides diversity to aid plants in responding to the impacts of climate change.
ENVIRONMENTAL AND EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY
(2021)
Review
Dermatology
Chang Zeng, Lam C. Tsoi, Johann E. Gudjonsson
Summary: The incidence of psoriasis is increasing over time, with recent studies pointing towards the importance of epigenetic modifications in its pathogenesis. Aberrant epigenetic patterns, including changes in DNA methylation, histone modifications and non-coding RNA expression, are observed in psoriatic skin. Reversing these epigenetic mechanisms has shown promise in improving psoriatic phenotypes, making epigenetic therapy a potential avenue for treating psoriasis.
EXPERIMENTAL DERMATOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Immunology
Liangjie Xu, Cuicui Zhou, Yi Liang, Tinpan Fan, Fen Zhang, Xinxin Chen, Wei Yuan
Summary: This article reviews the interaction between epigenetic modifications and the functions of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), and briefly introduces how the accumulation and function of MDSCs caused by epigenetic modifications impact disease development, providing a promising therapeutic strategy for related disorders.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Genetics & Heredity
Jinkun Xia, Wangsen Cao
Summary: Studies show that epigenetic modifications affect the Klotho gene in renal diseases, impacting disease progression. Lowered Klotho levels worsen the condition, but beneficial changes can be made through epigenetic interventions.
JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR MEDICINE-JMM
(2021)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ashby J. Morrison
Summary: Cellular adaptation to nutrient environment is crucial for survival, failure to adapt can result in cell death and diseases. Metabolism alterations, particularly in cancer cells, play a significant role in the pathogenesis of diseases. Recent studies have shown the interplay between metabolic pathways, epigenetic modifications, and transcriptional regulation in cancer cells.
Review
Oncology
Junyuan Xie, Li Gan, Bingjian Xue, Xinxing Wang, Xinhong Pei
Summary: Breast cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related death in women worldwide. Non-coding RNAs, especially lncRNAs, have been found to play important roles in breast cancer. The study of epigenetic modifications has also contributed to the understanding of the role of ncRNAs in breast cancer.
FRONTIERS IN ONCOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Yoshitaka Kubota, Hidekazu Nagano, Kentaro Kosaka, Hideyuki Ogata, Akitoshi Nakayama, Masataka Yokoyama, Kazutaka Murata, Shinsuke Akita, Motone Kuriyama, Nobutaka Furuyama, Masayuki Kuroda, Tomoaki Tanaka, Nobuyuki Mitsukawa
Summary: Ceiling culture-derived preadipocytes (ccdPAs) and adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) were isolated from human subcutaneous fat tissue and showed differences in adipogenic potential due to variations in methylation and histone modification levels of adipogenesis-related genes, such as PPARc, fatty acid-binding protein 4, and leptin. Genomewide epigenetic analysis revealed distinct patterns in CpG methylation and H3K4me3 modification between ccdPAs and ASCs, suggesting epigenetic mechanisms underlying adipogenic differentiation capabilities of these cell types.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY-CELL PHYSIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Cell Biology
Liang Kang, Huaqing Zhang, Chongyu Jia, Renjie Zhang, Cailiang Shen
Summary: Intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is a common cause of chronic joint-related disability in the elderly, impacting quality of life and causing social and economic burdens. The underlying pathological mechanisms are not fully understood, emphasizing the need for further research.
AGEING RESEARCH REVIEWS
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Xiufei Chen, Haiqi Xu, Xiao Shu, Chun-Xiao Song
Summary: The concept of epigenetics was first proposed in 1942. Chemical modifications on histones, DNA, and RNA have been identified as three key components of epigenetic modifications. These modifications play a crucial role in various biological processes and diseases, including cancer. With the advancement of sequencing technologies, scientists are now able to accurately map and quantify different types of epigenetic modifications in histones, DNA, and RNA, providing insights into gene regulation.
CELL DEATH AND DIFFERENTIATION
(2023)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Roberta Giordo, Anna Maria Posadino, Arduino Aleksander Mangoni, Gianfranco Pintus
Summary: An intricate interplay between genetic and environmental factors contributes to the development of type 2 diabetes (T2D) and its complications. Metformin, a derivative of biguanide, exerts pleiotropic effects through multiple epigenetic modifications, which are reported in various organs, tissues, and cellular compartments. This review discusses the emerging evidence regarding metformin-mediated epigenetic modifications, their significance, potential applications, and future research directions.
BIOCHEMICAL PHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Immunology
Huimin Liu, Dongxu Wang, Zhijing Yang, Shuangji Li, Han Wu, Jingcheng Xiang, Shaoning Kan, Ming Hao, Weiwei Liu
Summary: Epigenetic modifications play crucial roles in regulating the tumor microenvironment of head and neck tumors, influencing tumor development by altering gene expression and behavior of cells in TME.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Chemistry, Medicinal
Suneesh Kaimala, Challagandla Anil Kumar, Mohammed Z. Allouh, Suraiya Anjum Ansari, Bright Starling Emerald
Summary: This review summarizes the increasing prevalence of diabetes and its association with genetic, environmental, and epigenetic factors. It discusses the role of epigenetic mechanisms, specifically DNA methylation and histone modifications, in pancreatic development and the progression of diabetes, as well as the potential use of epigenetic modulators in diabetes treatment.
MEDICINAL RESEARCH REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
William G. Meikle, Theotime Colin, John J. Adamczyk, Milagra Weiss, Andrew B. Barron
Summary: The effects of neonicotinoid contamination on honey bees are controversial. A five-year study found that feeding honey bee colonies with imidacloprid in sugar syrup resulted in increased brood production, lower temperature variability, higher CO2 production, and more foragers. However, it did not affect adult bee numbers, hive temperatures, food stores, daily food acquisition, or colony survivorship.
ECOTOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY
(2022)
Article
Robotics
Anil Ozdemir, Mark Scerri, Andrew B. Barron, Andrew Philippides, Michael Mangan, Eleni Vasilaki, Luca Manneschi
Summary: Recognizing previously visited locations is an important but unsolved task in autonomous navigation. Recent research has shown that Echo State Networks (ESNs) can effectively solve this task and improve performance and generalization abilities.
IEEE ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Coline Monchanin, Maria Gabriela de Brito Sanchez, Lorelei Lecouvreur, Oceane Boidard, Gregoire Mery, Jerome Silvestre, Gael Le Roux, David Baque, Arnaud Elger, Andrew B. Barron, Mathieu Lihoreau, Jean-Marc Devaud
Summary: The ability of honey bees to avoid food contaminated with common metal pollutants was investigated. The results showed that bees did not distinguish between contaminated and uncontaminated food, and only showed reduced intake and appetitive responses at high concentrations of lead and zinc. It was found that bees were unable to detect low concentrations of harmful metals like arsenic and lead in their food, indicating that trace metal pollution poses a major threat to pollinators.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yi Bo Liu, Zhi Jiang Zeng, Andrew B. Barron, Ye Ma, Yu Zhu He, Jun Feng Liu, Zhen Li, Wei Yu Yan, Xu Jiang He
Summary: The study revealed that nonanal is the only scent component detected in various honeybee-pollinated plants and is strongly attractive to honeybees. Nonanal is present in both honey and nectar, forming a learned association with food reward in honeybees.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Amy M. Paten, Theotime Colin, Chris W. Coppin, Leon N. Court, Andrew B. Barron, John G. Oakeshott, Matthew J. Morgan
Summary: Understanding the cumulative risk of chemical mixtures at environmentally realistic concentrations is crucial in honey bee ecotoxicology. Ecotoxicogenomics, specifically transcriptomics, can provide insights into the mechanisms underlying phenotypic responses and link them to population impacts. In this study, gene expression profiles of honey bee larvae exposed to the pesticide imidacloprid and acaricide thymol, both separately and in combination, were analyzed using RNA-seq. The separate and combined treatments had distinct gene expression profiles, affecting different signaling and metabolic pathways. The molecular signature of the mixture revealed additive interactions in stress responses and non-additive interactions in secondary responses. Novel impacts on eye development genes correlated with long-term defects in visual learning performance. Establishing mechanistic links between molecular and phenotypic responses is important when predicting the effects of chemical mixtures on populations.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Editorial Material
Genetics & Heredity
Ryszard Maleszka, Robert Kucharski
Summary: Insect epigenetics faces the challenge of diverse epigenomic systems and aims to move beyond vague functional explanations by using mechanistic approaches. To accelerate progress, a convergence of genomic data and biochemical and single-cell-type analyses in species representing different evolutionary solutions is needed.
TRENDS IN GENETICS
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Theotime Colin, Ryan J. Warren, Stephen R. Quarrell, Geoff R. Allen, Andrew B. Barron
Summary: Assessing individual foraging performance is crucial for environmental policy-making. We have developed a new autonomous field method using RFID to record honey bee flight ontogeny and foraging performance. By separating bee traffic into returning and exiting tunnels, we have overcome previous limitations of RFID systems caused by traffic jams and antennae coupling.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Xu Jiang He, Andrew B. Barron, Liu Yang, Hu Chen, Yu Zhu He, Li Zhen Zhang, Qiang Huang, Zi Long Wang, Xiao Bo Wu, Wei Yu Yan, Zhi Jiang Zeng
Summary: This study reveals that there are significant differences in mRNA transcripts between honeybee queens and workers during their larval development. These differences are generated by a flexible splicing system. Poly(A) tails are found to negatively regulate the expression of differentially expressed transcript isoforms (DEIs) involved in caste differentiation. The expression of isoforms is unique to each caste and varies at different developmental stages, indicating a dynamic relationship between isoform expression and developmental mechanisms.
Article
Psychology, Experimental
Mark Kelly, Andrew B. Barron
Summary: Human cognition involves two types of reasoning: intuitive and fast Type 1 reasoning systems, and reflective and slow Type 2 reasoning systems. Exploring the benefits of dual processes of reasoning, a comparative perspective reveals how selective attention in insects and AI using dual systems of learning have transformed learning capacities and exceeded human performance in strategy games.
Article
Biology
Cwyn Solvi, Yonghe Zhou, Yunxiao Feng, Yuyi Lu, Mark Roper, Li Sun, Rebecca J. Reid, Lars Chittka, Andrew B. Barron, Fei Peng
Summary: This study found that bumblebees' preferences are based only on memories of ordinal comparisons. They use absolute information to rank different flowers, but memories for absolute information are lost or cannot be retrieved after 1 hour.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yong Zhang, Xu Jiang He, Andrew B. Barron, Zhen Li, Meng Jie Jin, Zi Long Wang, Qiang Huang, Li Zhen Zhang, Xiao Bo Wu, Wei Yu Yan, Zhi Jiang Zeng
Summary: Using a multiomics approach, we investigated the epigenomic landscapes of honey bee workers and queens during development, revealing distinct differences between the two castes. Genes involved in caste differentiation were regulated by multiple epigenomic systems, and manipulation of two candidate genes resulted in decreased weight and fewer ovarioles in newly emerged queens. These findings demonstrate the development of distinct epigenomic landscapes in worker and queen bees.
INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Entomology
Nurul Wahida Othman, Andrew B. Barron, Paul D. Cooper
Summary: Biting and chewing insects, such as crickets, have a foregut with a crop that allows them to store and process food when they cannot find it. During a short period of starvation, the size of the salivary glands of crickets decreases, but they immediately increase in size upon feeding. The amines that stimulate gland secretion are stored in the zymogen cells instead of the parietal cells, indicating that feeding and starving can affect different parts of the digestive system.
Review
Biology
Andrew B. Barron, Marta Halina, Colin Klein
Summary: The evolutionary history of animal cognition involves major transitions that opened up new possibilities for cognitive abilities. This article reviews and compares different explanations of these transitions. It argues that an important aspect of an evolutionary transition is that it changes what can be evolved, leading to differences in phenotypic spaces before and after the transition. The article proposes a framework for understanding cognitive evolution that focuses on how selection acts on the computational architecture of nervous systems.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Andrew Barron, Susan E. Fahrbach, Alison R. Mercer, Karen A. Mesce, David J. Schulz, Brian H. Smith, Eirik Sovik
Summary: Huang et al. argue that honey bees exhibit a human-like dopamine-regulated neuromodulatory mechanism underlying food-seeking behavior. However, there are concerns that need to be addressed before their results and interpretation can be widely accepted.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Ryszard Maleszka
Summary: This report summarizes the proceedings of the inaugural Clinical Epigenetics Conference, which focused on epigenetic diseases. The participants were optimistic about promptly merging the current knowledge with clinical applications.
