Mechanisms of chromatin-based epigenetic inheritance

Abstract

Multi-cellular organisms such as humans contain hundreds of cell types that share the same genetic information (DNA sequences), and yet have different cellular traits and functions. While how genetic information is passed through generations has been extensively characterized, it remains largely obscure how epigenetic information encoded by chromatin regulates the passage of certain traits, gene expression states and cell identity during mitotic cell divisions, and even through meiosis. In this review, we will summarize the recent advances on molecular mechanisms of epigenetic inheritance, discuss the potential impacts of epigenetic inheritance during normal development and in some disease conditions, and outline future research directions for this challenging, but exciting field.