The relationship between early-life environment, the epigenome and the microbiota

Abstract

Children exposed to early-life adversity carry a greater risk of poor health and disease into adulthood. This increased disease risk is shadowed by changes in the epigenome. Epigenetics can change gene expression to modify disease risk; unfortunately, how epigenetics are changed by the environment is unclear. It is known that the environment modifies the microbiota, and recent data indicate that the microbiota and the epigenome interact and respond to each other. Specifically, the microbiome may alter the epigenome through the production of metabolites. Investigating the relationship between the microbiome and the epigenome may provide novel understanding of the impact of early-life environment on long-term health.