A presentation within our series on Continuing Education will be presented on Thursday, November 2nd, 2023 at 3 PM.  The speaker will be our own UWC member and past President, Mariel Birnbaumer, Ph.D., who will speak about Epigenetics.

Epigenetics is a generic name for the physical modifications of our genetic material (DNA) and its associated proteins that take place in living cells and modify DNA expression.  The composition of the DNA doesn’t change, the “Genotype” remains the same, but changing the expression of the genes can produce different “Phenotypes”, i.e., individuals will look different.

As scientific information of the composition of the genome accumulated in the 1980s it became apparent that some regions were rich in methyl groups attached to the genetic material, soon after this was associated with a regulation of gene expression, the production of mRNA in particular.  These results told researchers that it was not sufficient to know the chemical composition of the DNA chain, it is necessary to learn how the cell decides what it makes or doesn’t.  These processes are still under study, but we have already identified some of the factors that trigger these modifications.  Apparently they can occur mostly during gestation. The next step will be the WHY.

This talk will be in person at an apartment in Palermo, and also on Zoom. Please RSVP to uwc.cont.ed@gmail.com, and indicate whether you will attend in person, or via Zoom. Information on location and the Zoom link will be sent to you upon your RSVP confirmation.