From e0ab833dab22b9927ce9c851501499b2e5a2bd61 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Suraj Subramanian Date: Wed, 13 Mar 2024 20:24:00 -0400 Subject: [PATCH] ok so this is not causing the build failure --- content/posts/karma-of-cells.md | 1 + 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+) diff --git a/content/posts/karma-of-cells.md b/content/posts/karma-of-cells.md index 7954eec..75d7b82 100644 --- a/content/posts/karma-of-cells.md +++ b/content/posts/karma-of-cells.md @@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ As a cell goes through life, it faces different situations and has to act accord The knowledge of when to express which genes (known as the _gene expression_) is stored in the cell's _epigenome_, a kind of cellular diary that remembers which recipes worked best [_[The Epigenome Learns From Its Experiences](https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/epigenetics/memory)_]. Unlike DNA, which changes slowly and randomly over many generations, the epigenome can change a lot in just one lifetime. The epigenome is a set of chemical compounds that live on the DNA strand. They don't change the DNA itself, but act like tags or markers that turn specific genes on and off. In this way they determine what proteins will a cell synthesize. Unlike the fixed DNA, epigenetic changes can occur frequently during a lifetime, and may be permanent or transient. The exact [mechanism of epigenetic updates](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epigenetics#Mechanisms) is complex and probably needs at least some background in molecular biology. +{{< figure src="https://www.lgmd2ifund.org/wp-content/uploads/reading-gene.png" attr="The Central Dogma of Biology ([src](https://www.lgmd2ifund.org/science-basics/from-gene-to-protein))" align=center link="https://www.lgmd2ifund.org/science-basics/from-gene-to-protein" target="_blank" >}} ### Cells inherit their parents' experiences The epigenome ends up being shaped in response to what the cell senses, how it reacts, and what it expects to happen next. We used to think that every new cell starts an epigenome from scratch, but now we know that the parent cell's epigenome - the story of their experience - is also passed down. Research has shown that children of Holocaust survivors have identical markers in their epigenome as their parents, even though they didn't go through the same traumatic experience [_[Study of Holocaust survivors finds trauma passed on to children's genes](https://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/aug/21/study-of-holocaust-survivors-finds-trauma-passed-on-to-childrens-genes)_]. This finding has profound implications... offspring - whether human or cellular, and whether they like it or not - inherit their parents' perspectives, instincts, and the epigenetic heuristics that dictate how it will respond and act. Our cells carry the echoes of experiences we've never personally lived.