A3 Refereed book chapter or chapter in a compilation book
Small non-coding RNAs and epigenetic inheritance
Authors: Tiina Lehtiniemi, Margareeta Mäkelä, Noora Kotaja
Editors: Raffaele Teperino
Publisher: Springer International Publishing
Publication year: 2020
Book title : Beyond Our Genes
Journal name in source: Beyond Our Genes: Pathophysiology of Gene and Environment Interaction and Epigenetic Inheritance
First page : 209
Last page: 230
ISBN: 978-3-030-35212-7
eISBN: 978-3-030-35213-4
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-35213-4_11
Non-coding RNAs have recently been revealed to be intergenerational carriers of epigenetic information. Particularly the studies on the paternal epigenetic inheritance of acquired traits, metabolic disorders and psychiatric conditions, have convincingly demonstrated the involvement of sperm RNA molecules in the process. Spermatozoa contain a complex mixture of RNAs of which especially small non-coding RNAs, such as microRNAs (miRNAs), PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) and tRNA-derived fragments (tRFs), have been shown to respond to environmental signals, exposures to toxicants, changes in diet or even early life trauma. Furthermore, recent animal studies where spermatozoal small RNAs have been injected into zygotes demostrate the capacity of RNA to transmit information about acquired conditions to offspring. Altogether, these studies highlight the central role of RNA-mediated epigenetic inheritance in the etiology of many complex diseases and therefore public health.