Pregnancy induces selective changes in hepatic genes involved in cell proliferation and apoptosis in mice

<p>During pregnancy the liver undergoes substantial structural and metabolic adaptations to meet the nutritional demands of the mother and fetus; however, the underlying mechanism is poorly understood. To address this, we analysed the expression of the liver transcriptome in non-pregnant and early, mid and late pregnancy mice.</p

Pregnancy Induced Changes in the Mouse Liver Transcriptome

<p>Data showing variation in blood metabolites and gene expression during pregnancy. Preliminary data for further analysis.</p

The Effect of the Amount and Timing of Folic Acid Supplementation During the Life Course on the Epigenetic Regulation of Cancer Determining Genes

<p>Mandatory Folic Acid (FA) fortification of staple foods<br>in a number of countries and periconceptional supplementation has led to increased levels of FA intake. There is ongoing controversy over the effect of FA supplementation on cancer risk, with high levels of FA (≥400ug/day) associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. FA is thought to infer cancer risk through modulation of the epigenome. Here, we investigated whether variations in FA intake<br>during adulthood induced persistent changes in the<br>expression of the tumour suppressor gene Brca1 and<br>the pluripotency gene Oct-4, which play key roles in<br>DNA repair and cellular differentiation.</p

Polyunsaturated fatty acid synthesis de novo is required for calcium release in vascular smooth muscle

<p>Previous studies show that inhibition of delta-5 desaturase and delta-6 causes a<br>decrease in phenylepherine (PE)- induced vasoconstriction in human femoral artery,<br>and in rat aorta and mesenteric arteries. These data showed that the activity of the<br>polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) biosynthesis pathway related to vasoconstriction is<br>specifically located in vascular smooth muscle (VSM). The study also showed that<br>inhibiting the PUFA-biosynthesis pathway causes a decrease in the release of the proconstriction<br>eicosanoids prostaglandin (PG) F2 alpha, PGE2 and thromboxane A2 (1).<br>Activity of the PUFA biosynthesis pathway has previously been shown in arterial<br>endothelial (2) and smooth muscle cells (3). However, there is no direct evidence of the<br>exact extent of the pathway and contribution of PUFA biosynthesis to vascular function<br>in VSM is currently unknown.</p

DNA methylation of SIRT1, the longevity gene, in blood from children at 5–7 years exhibits temporal stability and predicts adiposity in adolescence

<p>Our preliminary findings show that the methylation status of specific CpG loci in the peroxisomal proliferator-gamma-co-activator-(PGC)-1α promoter in blood at age 5-7 years predicted later adiposity in the children age 14 years. PGC1α is a downstream effector of Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), a gene which has been shown to influence lifespan in a range of species and which is known to regulate energy metabolism in different tissues.</p> <p>We, therefore, have investigated the temporal stability of specific CpG loci within the promoter of SIRT1 during childhood and whether the CpG loci that exhibited temporal stability predicted adiposity.</p