Genes Environments And Interactions

Gene Environment Interactions: Nature and Nurture in the Twenty-first Century offers a rare, synergistic view of ongoing revelations in gene environment interaction studies, drawing together key themes from epigenetics, microbiomics, disease etiology, and toxicology to illuminate pathways for clinical translation and the paradigm shift towards precision medicine. Across eleven chapters, Dr. Smith discusses interactions with the environment, human adaptations to environmental stimuli, pathogen encounters across the centuries, epigenetic modulation of gene expression, transgenerational inheritance, the microbiome's intrinsic effects on human health, and the gene-environment etiology of cardiovascular, metabolic, psychiatric, behavioral and monogenic disorders. Later chapters illuminate how our new understanding of gene environment interactions are driving advances in precision medicine and novel treatments. In addition, the book's author shares strategies to support clinical translation of these scientific findings to improve heath literacy among the general population. Offers a thorough, interdisciplinary discussion on recent revelations from gene environment interaction studies Illuminates environmental factors affecting disease-gene etiology and treatment Supports the clinical translation of gene environment interaction findings into novel therapeutics and precision medicine

Gene-Environment Interactions in Psychiatry: Nature, Nurture, Neuroscience begins with the basic aspects of gene–environment studies, such as basic genetics, principles of animals modeling, and the basic processes of how environmental factors affect brain and behavior, with part two describing the most important psychiatric disorders in detail. Each chapter has a similar structure that includes a general description of the disorder that is followed by an analysis of the role of genes and how they are affected by environmental factors. Each chapter ends with a description of the most relevant animal models, again focusing on gene–environment interactions. The book concludes with a critical evaluation of the current research and an outlook for the (possible) future, offering a vignette into the fascinating world of nature, nurture, and neuroscience. Written to provide in-depth basic knowledge on gene–environment interactions for graduate students, postgraduate students, clinicians, and scientists Includes descriptions of the major psychiatric disorders Provides detailed descriptions of animal models and basic genetic information Presents well-illustrated color figures to explain complex features in a simple manner

Gene–environment (G × E) interaction analysis is a statistical method for clarifying G × E interactions applicable to a phenotype or a disease that is the result of interactions between genes and the environment. This book is the first to deal with the theme of G × E interaction analysis. It compiles and details cutting-edge research in bioinformatics and computational biology and will appeal to anyone involved in bioinformatics and computational biology.

The genotype/phenotype dichotomy is being slowly replaced by a more complex relationship whereby the majority of phenotypes arise from interactions between one’s genotype and the environment in which one lives. Interestingly, it seems that not only our lives, but also our ancestors’ lives, determine how we look. This newly recognized form of inheritance is known as (epi)genetic, as it involves an additional layer of information on top of the one encoded by the genes. Its discovery has constituted one of the biggest paradigm shifts in biology in recent years. Understanding epigenetic factors may help explain the pathogenesis of several complex human diseases (such as diabetes, obesity and cancer) and provide alternative paths for disease prevention, management and therapy. This book introduces the reader to the importance of the environment for our own health and the health of our descendants, sheds light on the current knowledge on epigenetic inheritance and opens a window to future developments in the field.

Genetic effects are the core concepts from which quantitative genetics and the evolutionary synthesis emerged. The groundbreaking theory of genetic effects was first proposed over a century ago. This book revises that theory, both conceptually and mathematically, and brings it up-to-date. The theory here compiled is supplemented with non-previously-published developments covering the broadest spectrum of simultaneously multiallelic and multilocus architectures with autosomal and sex-linked loci Arbitrary interactions (dominance, gene-gene, gene-environment, gene-sex, and parent-of-origin interactions) are accounted for Both effects of allele substitutions from the reference of individual genotypes and in the context of populations are worked out Populations are considered regardless of any departures from equilibrium frequencies (including both departures from Hardy-Weinberg, departures from linkage equilibrium, and non-random associations between/among genes and environments) All developments are derived under the same mathematical framework, so that transformations of genetic effects between different contexts are easily allowed In brief, this book enables novel applications to current empirical paradigms (like gene-mapping and genomic prediction) while adhering to the classical conceptualization of genetic effects and variance decomposition that let quantitative genetics and the evolutionary synthesis flourish. All relevant concepts are carefully clarified and discussed from a historical perspective. The theoretical developments presented in the book are illustrated by built-in cases and applications with real data. Reassuringly, the adequacy of the theory here presented is corroborated based on the fundamentals of model development.

Over the past century, we have made great strides in reducing rates of disease and enhancing people's general health. Public health measures such as sanitation, improved hygiene, and vaccines; reduced hazards in the workplace; new drugs and clinical procedures; and, more recently, a growing understanding of the human genome have each played a role in extending the duration and raising the quality of human life. But research conducted over the past few decades shows us that this progress, much of which was based on investigating one causative factor at a time—often, through a single discipline or by a narrow range of practitioners—can only go so far. Genes, Behavior, and the Social Environment examines a number of well-described gene-environment interactions, reviews the state of the science in researching such interactions, and recommends priorities not only for research itself but also for its workforce, resource, and infrastructural needs.

How we raise young children is one of today's most highly personalized and sharply politicized issues, in part because each of us can claim some level of "expertise." The debate has intensified as discoveries about our development-in the womb and in the first months and years-have reached the popular media. How can we use our burgeoning knowledge to assure the well-being of all young children, for their own sake as well as for the sake of our nation? Drawing from new findings, this book presents important conclusions about nature-versus-nurture, the impact of being born into a working family, the effect of politics on programs for children, the costs and benefits of intervention, and other issues. The committee issues a series of challenges to decision makers regarding the quality of child care, issues of racial and ethnic diversity, the integration of children's cognitive and emotional development, and more. Authoritative yet accessible, From Neurons to Neighborhoods presents the evidence about "brain wiring" and how kids learn to speak, think, and regulate their behavior. It examines the effect of the climate-family, child care, community-within which the child grows.

Understanding the play between heredity and environment, and relating it to disease causation, is the task of ecogenetics. Gene-Environment Interactions: Fundamentals of Ecogenetics presents the first comprehensive survey of this discipline, reflecting its relationship with toxicology, epidemiology, pharmacology, public health, and other medical and biological fields. Divided into four sections, the text elucidates key basic and advanced topics: * Section 1 covers fundamentals, including the history of the discipline, a discussion of the molecular laboratory tools currently available to assess genotypes, using such measurements in molecular epidemiology studies, and the statistical issues involved in their analysis. * Section 2 focuses on a number of key genetic polymorphisms relevant for ecogenetics, including enzymes of phase I and phase II metabolism, enzymes involved in DNA repair, as well as receptors and ion channels. This highlights characteristics of selected, widely studied genotypic/phenotypic differences, and allows discussion of how given genetic variations can influence responses to exogenous chemicals. * Section 3 examines gene-environment interactions through a disease-based approach, addressing how genetic polymorphisms can influence susceptibility to various diseases. Chapters cover important disease conditions such as various types of cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular disease, chronic pulmonary diseases, infectious diseases, diabetes, and obesity. * The final section discusses the ethical, legal, and social issues that arise when investigating and evaluating genetic polymorphisms in human populations, as well as the impact of ecogenetics on risk assessment, regulatory policies, and medicine and public health. Packed with clear examples illustrating concepts, as well as numerous tables and figures, Gene-Environment Interactions: Fundamentals of Ecogenetics is a unique resource for a wide range of physicians, students, and other specialists.