Epigenetics Communications is excited to announce the launch of a new Collection: Transgenerational Epigenetic Inheritance: Mechanisms, Models, and Implications. This Collection explores how epigenetic information can be transmitted across generations, shaping traits and influencing health far beyond the original organism. To celebrate this launch, we sat down with our Guest Editors, Rana Dajani and Jason Gardiner, for an insightful conversation about why this topic matters, what challenges lie ahead, and what excites them most about the future of this field.
Why is transgenerational epigenetic inheritance such a relevant topic in today’s scientific landscape?
RD: Because although it has been shown to happen in mice and worms it has not been proven in humans. The implication in humans is that our experiences can be transferred to our great grandchildren. This would change how we talk about destiny and agency. I have led a research team that has proven the transmission of an epigenetics signature of trauma across three generations in humans recently and I have written about the implications of this discovery in humans. Moving from victimhood and vulnerability to agency and adaptability grounded in evolution.
JG: Transgenerational memory has been a topic of study in plant biology for many years. While this has been a topic of interest, the mechanisms that allow, for example, a plant that has experienced a particular stress to produce offspring that are more resilient to that stress are still largely unknown. With the advent and accessibility of a variety of omics tools, combined with programmable targeting tools for both mutation and manipulation of epigenetic marks, we are now in a time when these questions can be addressed.
What drew you to the study of epigenetics and, in particular, transgenerational inheritance? Was there a defining moment in your research journey?
JG: All multicellular life is generated from a single cell at some point in its life cycle. This cell contains the overall blueprint for the entire organism, and the ability of cells to then take on particular identities and reproducibly form de novo patterns that give rise to all the specialized structures seen in a body. While much focus is on the blueprint, we are still just learning how to read it. Why do certain cells focus on particular parts of that blueprint while ignoring others? What is the logic behind how these cells make these decisions? This has driven me throughout my career. In my PhD I studied this question by investigating how vein patterns form de novo in each leaf, following in my post-doc, where I began developing tools to target the manipulation of epigenetic marks, so correlations linked to differential epigenetic states could be tested causally.
RD: As a daughter of a Palestinian who was violently evicted by Zionist forces in 1948 from our homeland the impact of trauma on our genes has always interested me more so I was curious whether those changes would be transmitted to my children and what would that mean. I was also averse to the western framing of experience of trauma as a negative thing. I was curious as a scientist from a population exposed to trauma if I could find other ways of approaching this topic drawing from nature and human evolution since as humans we have always been exposed to one kind of trauma or another. Why is this always framed in a negative way? Could it be a colonial trope seeking to victimize us and then save us. I wanted to find out for myself.
If you had to explain transgenerational epigenetic inheritance to someone outside the scientific community, how would you describe it in simple terms?
RD: I like to call it my grandmother’s wisdom. What we inherit from our grandparents are their experiences that help us become more adaptable to future unpredictable environments.
JG: In plants, it is commonly referred to as memory; the offspring can retain a memory of a particular event that affected the parental generation.
What is one common misconception about epigenetic inheritance that you believe needs clarification?
RD: Epigenetics is not changing the DNA sequence. Epigenetics is turning on or off genes. Therefore, epigenetics changes can be reversible.
What is the most unexpected or intriguing finding you’ve encountered in this area of research?
RD: That the 14 genomic locations that had an intergenerational epigenetic signature of trauma were not identified in any known biological pathway. This indicates that they are involved probably in higher regulation and therefore challenge the existing framework that intergenerational inheritance of trauma is negative. It opens a door to look at intergenerational inheritance of trauma in a different way that is closer to nature and other organisms that are like humans such as octopus. This suggests that what we pass on is agency and adaptability not victimhood and vulnerability. That is what I call my grandmother’s wisdom.
JG: I think the interesting thing that we are still trying to understand is that a small epigenetic mark like DNA methylation can silence gene expression, prevent the silencing of gene expression, or have no effect. It can be very stable, being maintained over indefinite generations, or unstable and lost over just a single generation. Even with the extensive work that has been done on this particular epigenetic mark, we are still only at the beginning of understanding its role in directing the logic of specific developmental or stress response decisions.
What types of contributions or perspectives are you hoping to see from authors submitting to this Collection?
JG: This collection represents the coming together of fields to work on this question. While similar epigenetic marks are, for the most part, well conserved, there are many exceptions that open the door to different strategies biology uses to understand its own DNA blueprint.
RD: I hope to see diversity of contributions from the global south and from different disciplines to enrich the field.
Looking ahead, what do you think will be the most significant breakthrough in transgenerational epigenetics over the next decade?
RD: Identifying epigenetics of signature across four generations and identifying epigenetics of resilience which is how we cope and survive in response to trauma rooted in meaning making, community and agency.
We hope you enjoyed these perspectives from our Guest Editors! This Collection is now open for submissions, and we invite researchers from across disciplines to contribute their latest findings and ideas. Together, let’s advance the understanding of how epigenetic inheritance impacts biology, medicine, and beyond.
Learn more about the Collection and submission guidelines here.