ArticleEpigenetics2024
Calling the question: what is mammalian transgenerational epigenetic inheritance?
Article in Epigenetics, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Impact of parental adverse childhood experiences on children's healthcare utilisation: a systematic review.Journal of epidemiology and community health · 2026Pooled it
- Evolutionary trade-offs between intergenerational and transgenerational fitness effects.Evolution letters · 2026Article
- Germline and Embryonic Mechanisms in the Epigenetic Inheritance of Neurodevelopmental and Cognitive Traits in Mammals.Biomolecules · 2026Review
- Sex-specific multigenerational epigenetic responses to real-world chemical mixture exposure in an outbred sheep model.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Intergenerational and transgenerational epigenetic mechanisms shaping livestock production and reproduction.The Journal of reproduction and development · 2026Review
- Emerging opportunities for DNA methylation biomarkers in cattle improvement.The Journal of reproduction and development · 2026Review
- Article
- Epigenetic mechanisms in maternal-fetal crosstalk: inter- and trans-generational inheritance.Epigenomics · 2025Review
- "Community traditions, community kinship, language, and land bring me a lot of joy": the importance of culture and social support in the health and wellbeing of Métis people.International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being · 2025Article
- Transgenerational skin adaptations to late-gestation heat stress in great-granddaughters.JDS communications · 2025Article
- A Recursive Model Approach to Include Epigenetic Effects in Genetic Evaluations Using Simulated DNA Methylation Effects.Journal of animal breeding and genetics = Zeitschrift fur Tierzuchtung und Zuchtungsbiologie · 2025Article
- Transgenerational Epigenetic and Phenotypic Inheritance Across Five Generations in Sheep.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Overweight/Obesity and Ancestral Environmental Smoking Exposures: A Summary of Results from the ALSPAC Cohort.The Yale journal of biology and medicine · 2025Article
- The effects of breeding young bulls and cowsAnimal reproduction · 2025Review
- Paternal preconception donepezil exposure enhances learning in offspring.Behavioral and brain functions : BBF · 2024Article
- A critical review of the recent concept of regulatory performance of DNA Methylations, and DNA methyltransferase enzymes alongside the induction of immune microenvironment elements in recurrent pregnancy loss.Toxicology reports · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
While transgenerational epigenetic inheritance has been extensively documented in plants, nematodes, and fruit flies, its existence in mammals remains controversial. Several factors have contributed to this debate, including the lack of a clear distinction between intergenerational and transgenerational epigenetic inheritance (TEI), the inconsistency of some studies, the potential confounding effects of in-utero vs. epigenetic factors, and, most importantly, the biological challenge of epigenetic reprogramming. Two waves of epigenetic reprogramming occur: in the primordial germ cells and the developing embryo after fertilization, characterized by global erasure of DNA methylation and remodelling of histone modifications. Consequently, TEI can only occur if specific genetic regions evade this reprogramming and persist through embryonic development. These challenges have revived the long-standing debate about the possibility of inheriting acquired traits, which has been strongly contested since the Lamarckian and Darwinian eras. As a result, coupled with the absence of universally accepted criteria for transgenerational epigenetic studies, a vast body of literature has emerged claiming evidence of TEI. Therefore, the goal of this study is to advocate for establishing fundamental criteria that must be met for a study to qualify as evidence of TEI. We identified five criteria based on the consensus of studies that critically evaluated TEI. To assess whether published original research papers adhere to these criteria, we examined 80 studies that either claimed or were cited as supporting TEI. The findings of this analysis underscore the widespread confusion in this field and highlight the urgent need for a unified scientific consensus on TEI requirements.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.