A study finds that XIST, the gene that shuts down one X chromosome in people who have two, is linked to cancer in males. 

Although epigenetic changes were long thought to largely act on the genome, rather than as part of it, research is now showing that these patterns can, directly or indirectly, change the genetic code.

Evidence is mounting that epigenetic marks on DNA can influence future generations in a variety of ways. But how such phenomena might affect large-scale evolutionary processes is hotly debated.

Some studies suggest that associations between the health of children and the experiences of their parents or grandparents may be due to epigenetic mechanisms, but confounding factors challenge this interpretation.

The concept of epigenetic inheritance has long been controversial. Some researchers hope that new data on cross-generational effects of environmental exposures will help settle the debate.

A pair of new studies finds that analyzing material from a Pap smear can reveal tumor risk in distant parts of the body, potentially allowing early interventions.

An independent lab fails to replicate results suggesting mammals exposed to pathogens could pass on immunological protections through epigenetic mechanisms.

Offspring of animals subjected to a real or simulated pathogen were more able to fend off disease, a study finds.

Researchers found more than 800 sites in the genome where the twins bore the same chemical tags.

Obese mice that exercised while pregnant gave birth to pups that grew up free of the metabolic issues present in the adult young of sedentary obese mothers—possibly by staving off epigenetic changes to a key metabolic gene.

Researchers could accurately detect life-threatening vascular complications in type 2 diabetes patients by analyzing hydroxymethylated cytosines in freely circulating DNA.

The diurnal cycles of the microbiome alter the activity of a protein produced by the host, and in turn guide histone acetylation, gene expression, and metabolic activity.

The unborn chicks translate auditory alarms from adult birds into quaking vibrations.

Breast cancer researcher and oncologist Nancy Davidson discusses what we’ve learned from the first wave of epigenetic trials for breast cancer, and what challenges lie ahead before such therapies reach the clinic.

A large study seeks to answer whether a man’s childhood diet has transgenerational repercussions.

A study suggests that the direct transfer of DNA methylation marks from one generation to the next is much less common than scientists previously thought.

Male rodents exposed to nicotine had changes in sperm genome methylation and produced pups and grandpups with abnormal behavior.

Methylation patterns at so-called metastable epialleles in the genome stamp a memory into each of our cells.

A study of chemical tags on histone proteins hints at how the same genome can yield very different animals.