Sex differences in the relationships between obesity, alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking and serum lipid and apolipoprotein concentrations in a normal population

Genomic imprinting occurs before fertilization, impacts every cell of the developing child, and may be sensitive to environmental perturbations. The noncoding RNA, nc886 (also called VTRNA2-1) is the only known example of the ∼100 human genes imprinted by DNA methylation, that shows polymorphic imprinting in the population. The nc886 gene is part of an ∼1.6-kb differentially methylated region (DMR) that is methylated in the oocyte and silenced on the maternal allele in about 75% of humans worldwide. Here, we show that the presence or absence of imprinting at the nc886 DMR in an individual is consistent across different tissues, confirming that the imprint is established before cellular differentiation and is maintained into adulthood. We investigated the relationships between the frequency of imprinting in newborns and maternal age, alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking before conception in more than 1,100 mother/child pairs from South Africa. The probability of imprinting in newborns was increased in older mothers and decreased in mothers who drank alcohol before conception. On the other hand, cigarette smoking had no apparent relationship with the frequency of imprinting. These data show an epigenetic change during oocyte maturation which is potentially subject to environmental influence. Much focus has been placed on avoiding alcohol consumption during pregnancy, but our data suggest that drinking before conception may affect the epigenome of the newborn.

Download Full-text

Frequency and effects of food intake, cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption among the residents in Hisayama, Kyushu Island, Japan

Nosotchu ◽

10.3995/jstroke.8.159 ◽

1986 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 159-166

Author(s):

Yasuo Hirota ◽

Toshirou Yanai ◽

Yutaka Hasuo ◽

Junichi Wada ◽

Yutaka Kiyohara

Keyword(s):

Food Intake ◽

Alcohol Consumption ◽

Cigarette Smoking ◽

Kyushu Island

Download Full-text

Genetic Polymorphism of Glutathione S Transferases M1 and T1 in Indian Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Disease Markers ◽

10.1155/2010/328408 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 28 (6) ◽

pp. 369-376 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Mohammad Asim ◽

Luqman A. Khan ◽

S. A. Husain ◽

Sajid Husain ◽

Manash P. Sarma ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Alcohol Consumption ◽

Liver Cancer ◽

Cigarette Smoking ◽

Case Control Study ◽

Smoking Habit ◽

Case Control ◽

Gstt1 Null Genotype ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Control Study

Objective:Our aim was to evaluate whether the association of GSTM1/T1 gene polymorphisms modifies the risk of Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and what is its correlation with other predisposing risk factors like alcohol intake, cigarette smoking and hepatitis B and C infections.Study design/setting:It was a case-control study, included 254 HCC cases compared with 525 hospital-based age and sex matched cases of chronic liver disease without HCC as controls from Indian population. The GSTM1 and GSTT1 genotypes were detected using conventional multiplex PCR method.Results:In this case-control study, we observed a positive correlation between age, HBV and HCV infection, smoking habit of > 20 packs/year, alcohol consumption of > 100 g/day and risk of liver cancer. We found significantly increased risk associated with GSTM1 null genotype (OR = 3.49; 95% CI = 2.52–4.84) as well as GSTT1 null genotype (OR = 3.12; 95% CI = 2.19–4.45), respectively. However, an increased risk of HCC was observed among heavy drinkers with GSTM1 (OR = 2.01; 95% CI = 1.11–3.66). Further, cigarette smoking showed a non-significant association with GSTT1 (OR = 1.49; CI = 0.69–3.25).Conclusion:Our results suggest that the variants in low penetrance gene such as GSTM1 and GSTT1 are associated with an increased liver cancer risk. Further, an influence of GSTM1/T1 null genotypes may contribute in the etiology of HCC in patients with higher cigarette and alcohol consumption.

Download Full-text