Epigenetics:Lamarkism revived (Introduction)

by David Turell , Friday, March 07, 2014, 15:35 (3708 days ago) @ David Turell

Many experiments in plants and animals show environmental effects can be passed on in subsequent generations, but how is the current question. It is not accidental mutations, but a direct effect. Two examples:-"The public first started to take notice in the mid-2000s, after large epidemiological investigations in Europe began to show transgenerational effects in humans. One study of Swedish historical records showed that men who had experienced famine before puberty were less likely to have grandsons with heart disease or diabetes than men who had plenty to eat5. Similar work with children in Britain reported in 2005 that fathers who had started smoking before the age of 11 had an increased risk of having boys of above average weight."-http://www.nature.com/news/epigenetics-the-sins-of-the-father-1.14816