Introduction to Epigenetics

To introduce you to epigenetics, I’ll start off with an example:

If you have the same sentence, but you change the punctuation, the meaning is changing.

·         My favorite flavor of Hot Pockets by far is ham and cheese. I am not sure what to make of this “Limited Edition” Spicy Hawaiian Style Pizza. But I’ll try almost anything once. 

·         My favorite flavor of Hot Pockets by far is ham. And cheese I am not sure what to make of. This “Limited Edition” Spicy Hawaiian Style Pizza? But I’ll try, almost. Anything! Once! 

The study of this “genetic punctuation” is called epigenetics. The prefix epi means over or above. So epigenetics means above genetics. An epigenom does not change DNA but it decides how much or whether some certain genes are expressed.  Simplified, a genome is like the hardware of your computer but the epigenome is like the software that tells the hardware what to do. The genom does the work, but the epigenom says how to do the work. Tiny chemical tags, called methyl groups are attached to the DNA. In essence, the tags can shut down or turn on genes. Not only that, but the tags are inherited by the next generation as well.

Most epigenetic information of a parent is copied to his or her children’s genom, but also fresh ones are created for this new embryo. Some get stuck on the DNA and are passed from generation to generation. Epigenomes change throughout our entire life. A genetic trait is not only a product of genes but also of environment. They are influenced by what we do, what we eat, how stressed out we are and other factors.  A bad diet, for example, can lead methyl groups binding to the wrong place. Because of these bad “instructions”, cells become abnormal and become a disease.

Epigenetics is an exciting area of genetic research that will give answers to how the genetic code on your DNA is affected by aging, your environment, and other circumstances.

Napalm Girl - Descriptive Text

The very first thing that catches the eye of someone observing the picture we chose, would be a young naked and barefooted girl slowly running towards the person taking the picture. She has her arms stretched away from her body, as if she was shaking them to try and alleviate unbearable pain. Her mouth is hanging wide open and her face is contorted with what might be excruciating pain or extreme anger. This girl is depicted as the centre of both the photograph and the scene displayed in the photograph. Around her there are four more children, almost all of them equally distressed, following or preceding the young girl. If you look at the position of their arms and legs, it seems like they are not walking, but running away from something which might be the cause of their distress. The five children are running along a broad and seemingly deserted road and are followed by five calm-looking soldiers, some of them armed with machine guns. The street, which runs a straight line through the picture, is surrounded by what might be a flat meadow landscape and three or more dilapidated looking houses. If you focus your eyes on the end of the road, you can spot a billowing cloud bank of smoke in the back of the picture, which might be the source of the children’s distress. The smoke cloud completely covers the sky and causes the rest of the landscape to disappear into impenetrable darkness.

Syrian refugees in Lebanon - Narrative article

The number of Syrian refugees registered in Lebanon has exceeded one million, what the UN calls a “devastating milestone” for such a small country. Now refugees, half of them children, equal a quarter of Lebanon’s population.  One of them is Mariam Ramu, mother of four children; she set herself on fire in protest of not receiving help. Mariam got critically injured. “I would rather choose to be dead, than seeing how my children and husband get killed in front of me”, she says under tears. Mariam and her family fled to Lebanon about a year ago under awful circumstances. Hunger, pain and fear, were their companions for several weeks, until they finally arrived at their destination – but life did not get better. Hundreds of people in different parts of the country have been killed due to violence. Mariam's story of frustration, humiliation and desperation mirrors that of countless other refugees.

PSA - TV commercial

Situation:

Husband and wife wake up in their bedroom

Husband: Good morning honey!

Wife: Hey sweetheart good morning! Did you sleep well?

Husband: Yes, pretty good, I’m always sleeping great, when you are next to me. I love you!

Wife: I love… (talks like a robot) ERROR ERROR, ERROR occurred!

Husband: Honey what’s wrong?

Wife: (talks like a robot) Update necessary...

Don’t waste your life with dead people; you will be one of them early enough!

A public service announcement

A day in the life of a typical student

Yippee finally it’s the day – first day of spring! It is not even 8.30 in the morning but the sun is already shining brightly through my window. It’s definitely time to have breakfast on the balcony. Funny, how easy getting out of bed becomes, when you can feel that summer is coming closer. A perfect day to go for a walk in the park – but no, not yet, it’s Wednesday and university is calling. I can barely concentrate on the stuff we do in class. My mind is already having coffee at Parkhouse. After one lesson of Communication Management, and two lessons of Italian Language and Culture, I can finally meet my friends at the park. It is the first day of the year when it is warm enough to have a drink outside. For me, spring is the best season  - warm enough to sit outside without a jacket, but not too hot that you get soaked with sweat. You feel like this day could last forever, but suddenly the sun start setting, and immediately after, it starts getting cold. That’s when we realize it is not summer yet, it is only March - and it will probably get cold again.

  View from my balcony












University











                                                                                   Stadtpark