A recent study found that the person’s exposure to violence leads to changes in his genes that move to his children, grandchildren and future generations.
Researchers from the universities of Florida and Weel in the United States and the Hashemite University in Jordan, this study, published on February 27 in the journal of scientific reports.
In 1982, the regime of the late Syrian President Hafez al -Assad besieged the city of Hama, and committed a massacre, killing tens of thousands of its citizens.
The researchers found that in addition to the killing of thousands, the massacre left deep hidden effects in the genes of Syrian families. It turned out that the descendants of women who were pregnant during the siege- the grandchildren who had never experienced such violence- carry his signs in their gene. This genetic fingerprint, which is transmitted through their mothers, provides the first human evidence of a phenomenon that has not been documented before except in animals: the genetic transition of stress (damage and damage) through generations.
“The idea that shock and violence can have repercussions on future generations that would help people be more sympathetic, and help policymakers to give more attention to the problem of violence. It may even help to explain some courses that seem to be unbroken between generations of abuse, poverty and shocks that we see Throughout the world, including the United States. “
Life experiences
While our genes do not change with life experiences, they can be controlled by a system known as genetic science above genetic. In response to stress or other events, cells can add small chemical signs to the genes that may calm them or change their behavior. These changes may help us adapt to the stressful environments, although the effects are not well understood.
The main author of the study and its team were looking for these chemical signs in the genes of Syrian families. While laboratory experiments have shown that animals can transfer genetic signatures of stress to future generations, proving the same thing in humans was almost impossible.
Moligan worked with Dr. Rana Djani, a molecular biology, at the Hashemite University of Jordan, and the Anthropology Catherine Press Brick of Yale University, to conduct a unique study. The research relied on the follow -up of 3 generations of Syrian immigrants to the country. Some families lived the Hama attack before fleeing to Jordan. Other families avoided Hama, but they lived the Syrian revolution against the Bashar regime.
The team collected samples of pregnant grandmothers and mothers during the two conflicts, as well as from their children. This study design means that there are grandmothers, mothers and children who have been violent in various stages of growth.
A third group of families immigrated to Jordan before 1980, avoiding violent contracts in Syria. These first immigrants worked as a decisive control element compared to families who suffered from the pressure of the civil war.
Djani, a refugee daughter, worked closely with the refugee community in Jordan to build confidence and pay attention to participating in the story. In the end, samples (swabs from the cheek) collected from 138 people from 48 families.
“Families want to tell their story,” Moligan said.
In Florida, the Moligan Laboratory scanned DNA in search of genetic adjustments and any relationship with families’ experience of violence.
In the descendants of the survivors of Hama, the researchers discovered 14 areas in the genome that were modified in response to their grandmother’s violence. These 14 adjustments prove that the genetic changes caused by stress may actually appear in future generations, just as they can appear in animals.
Genetic aging
The study also revealed 21 genetic sites in the genotics of people who were directly violent in Syria. In a third discovery, the researchers reported that the people who were violent while they were in the wombs of their mothers showed evidence of accelerated genetic aging, a type of biological aging that may be associated with the ability to develop life -related diseases.
Most of these genetic changes showed the same pattern after exposure to violence, indicating a kind of common genetic response to stress, which can not only affect the exposure to stress directly, but also to future generations.
“We believe that our work is related to many forms of violence, not just refugees. Home violence, sexual violence, and armed violence: all different types of violence … We face types of violence in the United States, and we must study them, and we must take them seriously,” Moligan said.
It is not clear whether these genetic changes affect the lives of those who carry them inside their gene. But some studies have found a link between genetic changes caused by stress and diseases such as diabetes.
One of the famous studies – which was conducted on the Dutch survivors of famine during World War II – indicated that their offspring endured genetic changes that increase the risk of obesity later in their lives. While many of these amendments may have no effect, some of them may affect our health, Moligan said.