
Ancestral alcohol consumption may influence your drinking behavior and responses to stress
Gregg E. Homanics, PhD Gregory Rompala University of Pittsburgh It has long been assumed that the father’s lifestyle choices prior to conception bared little consequence for the health of his children since DNA is largely unchanged over the lifespan. However, many controlled studies in genetically identical rodents have shown that …

Effects of tobacco and alcohol consumption on HPA axis DNA methylation
Meeshanthini V. Dogan & Robert A. Philibert Departments of Biomedical Engineering and Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City IA 52240 February 5, 2016 Smoking and alcohol consumption are leading preventable causes of morbidity and mortality in the United States and around the world. While the use of these substances have …

Using Saliva to Measure the Brain: Translating A Salivary Diagnostic for Fetal Alcohol Exposure
The consumption of any amount of alcohol during pregnancy can cause fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). FASD is an umbrella term covering a wide range of exposures from prenatal alcohol exposure, with the most severe outcome termed Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). However, the spectrum is wide and with no lower …

Epigenetic Mechanisms Underlying Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
Alcohol consumption during any stage of pregnancy has been shown to result in a range of congenital and cognitive defects, collectively known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Alcohol (EtOH) consumed by the mother is readily able to cross the placenta where it remains trapped in the amniotic fluid resulting …