Early-life programming is a major determinant of lifelong metabolic health, yet current preventive strategies focus almost exclusively on maternal factors. Emerging experimental and preclinical data reveal that a father's diet before conception, particularly high-fat intake, also shapes offspring physiology. Here, we synthesize the latest evidence on how such diets remodel the sperm epigenome during two discrete windows of vulnerability: (i) testicular spermatogenesis, via DNA methylation and histone modifications, and (ii) post-testicular epididymal maturation, where small non-coding RNAs are selectively gained.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiol Psychiatry Glob Open Sci
October 2023
Background: Psychiatric and metabolic disorders occur disproportionately often comorbidly, which poses particular hurdles for patients and therapists. However, the mechanisms that promote such comorbidities are largely unknown and therefore cannot yet be therapeutically targeted for the simultaneous treatment of both conditions. Because circadian clocks regulate most physiological processes and their disruption is a risk factor for both psychiatric and metabolic disorders, they may be considered as a potential mechanism for the development of comorbidities and a therapeutic target.
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