Essay On Epigenetic Development

Epigenetic is the heritable changes in the gene that does not involve the changes to the sequence of underlying DNA. An epigenetic change is regular and occurs naturally but at the same time it is influenced by factors that include the age of a person, disease state, and lifestyle and also environment the person lives. Epigenetic change can have more damaging effects that may result to such diseases as cancer (Curley, Jensen, Mashoodh & Champagne 2011).The epigenetic change is initiated and sustained by systems like histone modification, non-cordial RNA, and DNA methylation. An epigenetic change is, therefore, causing human disorders as well as fatal diseases. Epigenetic changes live through cell division in cell's life and stays for multiple generations. Early experiences have created foundations of differences in individuals and the manner they interact with the surrounding world. The Epigenetic pathways have integration between nature and nurture during the process of development and the viable changes that persist across generations. Development is a process that involves interaction between nature and nurture. This process, therefore, explains the understanding of gene-environment and it's important in brain development. Brains are refined and have changes in response to experiences before the baby is born. These experiences are first shared between the mother and the fetus where there is a growth sense between what the mother takes in, either by drinking

eating or even when she breathes during the pregnancy that mostly affects the fetus. The sensitivity to the environment, therefore, continues from when the child is born, through the childhood and beyond. The social world and the sensory around any developing child can have everlasting impacts on the brain of an individual.
Genetics to Epigenetic
Every human being genetic makeup is composed of the psychological and physical characteristic that provides each with a detailed description of their DNA.

The research carried in animal’s shows that through manipulating DNA even if it is a single gene, it can lead to profound results. Research shows that nurture has a wide effect on brain functioning and the behavior of a person since it has the very broad sense that consists of experiences such as nutritional, social and

toxicological.
Further researches on DNA can resolve the role of DNA and environment as a developmental influence. Blocks of human anatomy are built by the DNA sequence, and that’s the reason for describing it as a book of life. The process involves the collective efforts of enzymes and proteins which have direct interaction with the DNA strands consisting of proteins (Champagne, 2010). The main disadvantage is the storage of enough DNA which are effective for keep all information needed to make a complete organism, in this case, a human being requires more than 20,000 proteins that surround gene with not less than 3 billion nucleotide base pair. Epigenetic factors especially chemical modifications that are direct to the DNA were first thought to be resistant to early embryogenesis changes. Research has shown that the malleability of changes in epigenetic varies in response to a wide range of experiences that occurs across the period one lives. The experiences may be the biological exposures to such things like toxins, hormones, and the food eaten by each and also the quality of the social, emotional environment through which the parent-infant interacts with. Therefore, DNA sequence is as a result of evolution with the capacity of the environment creating the epigenetic variation that leads to changes in development, therefore, changing the characteristics of a each. The epigenetic changes may also be as a result of experiences that occur during some periods in life, for example, prenatal to childhood.
Prenatal Programming
When the fetus is developing in its mother's womb, a window of vulnerability which helps in developmental disruption is created by the rapid pace of biological change. Prenatal exposure to famine will result in a condition known as neurodevelopment disorder in adulthood. In the same case, mothers who suffers from stress during pregnancy experiences complications during birth and sometimes giving birth to babies before completion of the term. Stress also can be inherited by the offspring if the mother is prenatally stressed (Drake, Liu, Kerrigan, Meehan, & Seckl, 2011). A fetus that has been fertilized through invitro fertilization may have no genetic related to the mother. This may be due to unique developmental results that are associated with environmental and genetic risks brought about by maternal prenatal distress. Some of these risks include giving birth to a baby with less weight, giving birth to a baby before gestation period is due to and also giving birth o children with very different behavior from their parents.
Today many people appreciate the plasticity of the epigenetic factor that is associated with the environment. For example in the study carried out to determine the impact of famine on people who are exposed during their earliest stages of development, there is an alteration in DNA genes that controls growth and metabolism among people who have been exposed in utero to famine. Famine involves nutritional restrictions, but it also increases the evidence of epigenetic outcomes as a result of prenatal stress. Maternal depression and also anxiety during pregnancy as well as exposure to stress are all as a result of epigenetic suppression that affects infants and also children. Research has been carried out to examine the cause and effect and the impact of the prenatal adversity on the brain of a mice offspring (Drake, Liu, Kerrigan, Meehan & Seckl, 2011). The results showed that the offspring of prenatally stressed mice and which also had anxiety had behavior with physiological and neurobiological changes. This early life stress resulted in a decrease expression of glucocorticoid receptor.
The epigenetic changes that are associated with prenatal experiences are always sustained into adulthood. The dangers that are associated with epigenetic changes is that the prenatal exposure may affect the tissue of a fetus through the physiological changes in the mother during the time of pregnancy. The increase of stress to the mother also leads to increase in production of stress hormone that changes epigenetic patterns in the genome. The increase of the stress hormone increases the level of the hormones in the amniotic fluids leading to stressed offspring. It can also cause disruption to the placenta that is so essential for the growth and development of the fetus during pregnancy. This condition also causes complications during childbirth (Curley, Jensen, Mashoodh & Champagne 2011). The impact of prenatal environmental conditions can be reached upon through changing the quality of mother-fetus interactions. Disruption of the mother-fetus relationship has resulted in prenatal stress to both humans and animals which in return cause a long-term developmental problem to the infants. This issue can also be moderated if there would be a secure mother-fetus attachment.
Mothering the Brain of a Newborn
Since the brain of each newborn creature is always the sensitive structure that is refining as it responds to sounds, sights and the feelings of the surrounding world, it, therefore, requires special care. Parents are responsible for interacting with their infants as they undergo these changes. The relationship between mother and infants determines its development as well as its behavior. When the infants are raised in orphanages where they have little care given to them, their brain development is less compared to a infant who has been raised by its mother (Stel & Legler, 2015). This type of institution rearing of the infants results in emotional and social problems in childhood and also in adolescence. It leads to decrease in the total volume of the brain and also cognitive impairments.
Research has shown that the sensitive and responsible mothers help to cure the stress in their infants through holding them and showing love to them. The primates’ animals also show love to their infants by providing physical contacts to them. This form of contact is shown through pup licking and grooming the offspring as a way of cleaning it, it is also a sense of experiencing the shape and developing a brain. The offspring that receives all the care they need from their mothers in their first week of lives is known to perform better on tasks that are associated with cognitive. In this case, the lasting nature of the changes in the offspring suggests the involvement of the epigenetic variation. The assumptions that were there earlier on epigenetic variation that it could only be induced during embryogenesis hindering the application of the epigenetic analysis of the influence of postnatal environment is no more. This is because the impact of maternal care on a long-term basis is explained by the use of epigenetic pathways. All in all, the infants who receive the best maternal care in their infancy lives have got increased level of stress hormone receptor which also has the better mechanism to reduce their physiological and behavioral responses to stress. When an offspring is given good care during development, it can lead to changes in the genes within the brain leading to the significant move in the epigenetic profile of the whole epigenome (Stel & Legler, 2015). If the offspring is separated from its mother for a long period, there is an induction of epigenetic variation in the brain of the offspring causing stress hormone to release factor receptor. The situation can also lead to mood disorder in adulthood especially to human.
The pattern of maternal care has been observed that it can be transmitted from mother to daughter and so is to father and sons. In rodents, the maternal care given by female offspring can lead to a development of neuroendocrine circuits that is used to regulate and improve maternal care. High maternal care decreases the DNA methylation and the effects that emerge during postnatal development end ups persisting into adulthood.
Future Directions of the Field
As the field moves forward, it is believed that epigenetic will grow and develop since it is in its infancy life. Epigenetic has created a new way of thinking and has given researchers a lot of work to do. The correction of a blood sample is seen as the step that has been taken by scholars to further their knowledge on the matters of transgeneration mechanism in the human being. The question of development and inheritance can be addressed from a integrative perspective rather than being constrained by the issue of nurture versus nature. The developed brain is as a result of cohesive integration, responding, and changes in response to variation in DNA sequence. Experiences can be viewed in an integrated way by looking through the lens of epigenetic. It is also true that whatever the individual consumes, either through drinking, eating or even through breathing, together with the way they feel can impact their biology through the similar mechanism (Stel & Legler, 2015). The social environments that surround individuals and those of their parents can change the readability of their DNA as though they have been exposed to pollutants, toxins and also to the drugs. It is very important for the adults to nurture the developing brain of their offspring because nurturing developing brain is the same as nurturing the DNA of the generation to come continuity of life hence. It will be a great idea if parental, and ancestral exposure about one's stage of development information is exposed.