scholarly journals Paternal Effects on Embryonic, Fetal and Offspring Health: The Role of Epigenetics in the ICSI and ROSI Era

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Tesarik
Keyword(s):  
Paternal Effects ◽  
Offspring Health

scholarly journals Paternal effects in a wild‐type zebrafish implicate a role of sperm‐derived small RNAs

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (14) ◽  
pp. 2722-2735
Author(s):  
James Ord ◽  
Paul R. Heath ◽  
Alireza Fazeli ◽  
Penelope J. Watt
Keyword(s):  
Small Rnas ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Paternal Effects

Modulation of embryonic development due to mating with immunised males

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 565 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ludmila A. Gerlinskaya ◽  
Svetlana O. Maslennikova ◽  
Margaret V. Anisimova ◽  
Nataly A. Feofanova ◽  
Evgenii L. Zavjalov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Population Level ◽  
Paternal Effects ◽  
Adaptation Mechanism ◽  
Immune Priming ◽  
Gm Csf ◽  
In Utero Environment ◽  
Macrophage Colony Stimulating Factor ◽  
Macrophage Colony ◽  
Stimulation Of

The modification of pre- and postnatal development conferred by immunogenic stimulation of mothers provides a population-level adaptation mechanism for non-genetic transfer of maternal experiences to progeny. However little is known about the transmission of paternal immune experiences to offspring. Here, we show that immune priming of males 3–9 days before mating affects the growth and humoral environment of developing embryos of outbred (ICR) and inbred (C57BL and BALB/c) mice. Antigenic stimulation of fathers caused a significant increase in embryonic bodyweight as measured on Day 16 of pregnancy and altered other gestation parameters, such as feto–placental ratio. Pregnant females mated with immunised males were also characterised by changes in humoral conditions as shown by measurements of blood and amniotic progesterone, testosterone and granulocyte–macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) cytokine concentrations. These results emphasise the role of paternal effects of immune priming on the in utero environment and fetal growth.

scholarly journals Short-term diet intervention alters the small non-coding RNA (sncRNA) landscape of human sperm

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Candida Vaz ◽  
Alexandra J Kermack ◽  
Mark Burton ◽  
Pei Fang Tan ◽  
Jason Huan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vitamin D ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Sperm Quality ◽  
Human Sperm ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Omega 3 ◽  
Paternal Effects ◽  
Diet Intervention ◽  
Offspring Health

Offspring health outcomes are often linked with epigenetic alterations triggered by maternal nutrition and intrauterine environment. Strong experimental data also link paternal preconception nutrition with pathophysiology in the offspring, but the mechanism(s) routing the effects of paternal exposures remain elusive. Animal experimental models have highlighted small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs) as potential regulators of paternal effects, though less is known about the existence of similar mechanisms in human sperm. Here, we first characterised the baseline sncRNA landscape of human sperm, and then studied the effects of a 6-week diet intervention on their expression profile. Baseline profiling identified tRFs, miRNAs and piRNAs to be the most abundant sncRNA subtypes, primarily expressed from regulatory elements like UTRs, CpG-rich regions and promoters. Expression of a subset of these sncRNAs varied with age, BMI and sperm quality of the donor. Diet intervention enriched in vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids showed a marked increase of these nutrients in circulation and altered the sperm sncRNA expression. These included 3 tRFs, 15 miRNAs and 112 piRNAs, with gene targets involved in fatty acid metabolism, vitamin D response (LXR/RXR activation, TGF-beta and Wnt signaling), and transposable elements. These findings provide evidence that human sperms are sensitive to alterations in exposures such as diet, and sncRNAs capture the epigenetic imprint of this change. Hence changes to paternal nutrition during preconception may improve sperm quality and offspring health outcomes. To benefit future research, we developed iDad_DB, an open access database of baseline and diet-altered sncRNA in human male germline.

scholarly journals Testing for a role of Dnmt2 in paternal trans-generational immune priming

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nora K E Schulz ◽  
Maike F Diddens-de Buhr ◽  
Joachim Kurtz
Keyword(s):  
Potential Role ◽  
Epigenetic Inheritance ◽  
Red Flour Beetle ◽  
Adult Offspring ◽  
Paternal Effects ◽  
Immune Priming ◽  
Transgenerational Epigenetic Inheritance ◽  
Generational Effects ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

AbstractTrans-generational effects from fathers to offspring are increasingly reported from diverse organisms, but the underlying mechanisms are often unknown. Paternal trans-generational immune priming (TGIP) was demonstrated in the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum: non-infectious bacterial exposure (priming) of fathers protects their offspring against an infectious challenge. Here we studied a potential role of the Dnmt2 (now also called Trdnmt1) gene, which encodes a highly conserved enzyme that provides CpG methylation to a set of tRNAs and has previously been reported to be involved in transgenerational epigenetic inheritance in mice. We first studied gene expression and found that Dnmt2 was expressed throughout life, with high expression in testes. Knockdown of Dnmt2 in fathers slowed down offspring larval development and increased mortality of the adult offspring upon bacterial infection. However, the observed effects were independent of the paternal priming treatment. In conclusion, our results point towards a role of Dnmt2 for paternal effects, while elucidation of the mechanisms behind paternal TGIP needs further studies.

scholarly journals Exposures during the pre-puberty period and future offspring health: Evidence from human cohort studies

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cecilie Svanes ◽  
Randi J Bertelsen ◽  
Simone Accordini ◽  
John W Holloway ◽  
Pétur Juliusson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Time Window ◽  
Respiratory Health ◽  
Epidemiological Studies ◽  
Experimental Models ◽  
Adolescent Male ◽  
Epigenetic Programming ◽  
Lower Lung ◽  
The Many ◽  
Offspring Health

Abstract Emerging evidence suggests that exposures in pre-puberty, particularly in fathers-to-be, may impact the phenotype of future offspring. Analyses of the RHINESSA cohort find that offspring of father’s exposed to tobacco smoking or overweight that started in pre-puberty demonstrate poorer respiratory health in terms of more asthma and lower lung function. A role of pre-puberty onset smoking for offspring fat mass is suggested in the RHINESSA and ALSPAC cohorts, and historic studies suggest that ancestral nutrition during pre-puberty play a role for grand-offspring health and morbidity. Support for causal relationships between ancestral exposures and (grand-)offspring health in humans has been enhanced by advancements in statistical analyses that optimize the gain while accounting for the many complexities and deficiencies in human multi-generation data. The biological mechanisms underlying such observations have been explored in experimental models. A role of sperm small RNA in the transmission of paternal exposures to offspring phenotypes has been established, and chemical exposures and overweight have been shown to influence epigenetic programming in germ cells. For example, exposure of adolescent male mice to smoking led to differences in offspring weight and alterations in small RNAs in the spermatozoa of the exposed fathers. It is plausible that male pre-puberty may be a time window of particular susceptibility, given the extensive epigenetic reprogramming taking place in the spermatocyte precursors at this age. In conclusion, epidemiological studies in humans, mechanistic research and biological plausibility, all support the notion that exposures in the pre-puberty of males may influence the phenotype of future offspring.

scholarly journals Cognitive ability is heritable and predicts the success of an alternative mating tactic

2015 ◽  
Vol 282 (1809) ◽  
pp. 20151046 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carl Smith ◽  
André Philips ◽  
Martin Reichard
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Paternity Analysis ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Paternal Effects ◽  
Design Learning ◽  
Alternative Mating Tactic ◽  
Cognitive Traits

The ability to attract mates, acquire resources for reproduction, and successfully outcompete rivals for fertilizations may make demands on cognitive traits—the mechanisms by which an animal acquires, processes, stores and acts upon information from its environment. Consequently, cognitive traits potentially undergo sexual selection in some mating systems. We investigated the role of cognitive traits on the reproductive performance of male rose bitterling ( Rhodeus ocellatus ), a freshwater fish with a complex mating system and alternative mating tactics. We quantified the learning accuracy of males and females in a spatial learning task and scored them for learning accuracy. Males were subsequently allowed to play the roles of a guarder and a sneaker in competitive mating trials, with reproductive success measured using paternity analysis. We detected a significant interaction between male mating role and learning accuracy on reproductive success, with the best-performing males in maze trials showing greater reproductive success in a sneaker role than as a guarder. Using a cross-classified breeding design, learning accuracy was demonstrated to be heritable, with significant additive maternal and paternal effects. Our results imply that male cognitive traits may undergo intra-sexual selection.

scholarly journals Mapping the past, present and future research landscape of paternal effects

BMC Biology ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Rutkowska ◽  
Malgorzata Lagisz ◽  
Russell Bonduriansky ◽  
Shinichi Nakagawa
Keyword(s):  
Future Research ◽  
Evolutionary Perspective ◽  
Paternal Effects ◽  
Research Gaps ◽  
Systematic Map ◽  
The Past ◽  
Number Of Publications ◽  
Offspring Health ◽  
Response To Environmental Change ◽  
Design Experiments

Abstract Background Although in all sexually reproducing organisms an individual has a mother and a father, non-genetic inheritance has been predominantly studied in mothers. Paternal effects have been far less frequently studied, until recently. In the last 5 years, research on environmentally induced paternal effects has grown rapidly in the number of publications and diversity of topics. Here, we provide an overview of this field using synthesis of evidence (systematic map) and influence (bibliometric analyses). Results We find that motivations for studies into paternal effects are diverse. For example, from the ecological and evolutionary perspective, paternal effects are of interest as facilitators of response to environmental change and mediators of extended heredity. Medical researchers track how paternal pre-fertilization exposures to factors, such as diet or trauma, influence offspring health. Toxicologists look at the effects of toxins. We compare how these three research guilds design experiments in relation to objects of their studies: fathers, mothers and offspring. We highlight examples of research gaps, which, in turn, lead to future avenues of research. Conclusions The literature on paternal effects is large and disparate. Our study helps in fostering connections between areas of knowledge that develop in parallel, but which could benefit from the lateral transfer of concepts and methods.

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