Each type of cell in our body expresses our genes differently based on many things including what they are (skin or kidney cells) and how old we are (newborn or 65 years old). These differences are controlled by our epigenome \u2013 the set of molecular marks along our DNA that dictate which and when genes turn on and off. Turns out our environment can influence and alter these marks!<\/p>\n
For this episode we talked to Dr. Dana Dolinoy<\/a> of the University of Michigan about her work on the epigenome, including how twin mom mice can birth very different looking newborns\u2014either yellow and obese or brown and normal weight\u2014depending on what they ate during pregnancy.<\/p>\n