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REPRODUCTIVE ENDOCRINOLOGY

Dad’s diet – smRNA methylation signatures in sperm pass on disease risk

Metabolic disease risk is thought to arise at the interface of genetics and the environment. A new study identifies an enzyme that modifies small non-coding RNA and is required for passing on the effects of high-fat diet from father to offspring.

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Fig. 1: Changes in tRNA-derived small RNAs following a high-fat diet.

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Correspondence to Anne C. Ferguson-Smith.

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Mashoodh, R., Ferguson-Smith, A.C. Dad’s diet – smRNA methylation signatures in sperm pass on disease risk. Nat Rev Endocrinol 14, 446–447 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41574-018-0051-z

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