Nutriepigenomics and food pesticides: insights on epigenetic inheritance and neurodegeneration

Pesticides have been identified as factors able to alter epigenome of both the exposed generation and their offspring. Exposure to low dosage of permethrin, mainly through diet, has been demonstrated almost worldwide in the general population, specifically in children, and sublethal insecticide concentrations have been linked to chronic disease development, neurodegenerative in particular. In this study we investigate chronic and progressive damages induced by early-life exposure to permethrin on dopaminergic pathway and their effects on the epigenome of both directly exposed rats and their offspring. Results showed that exposure to low dosage of PERM in early-life can alter global DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation in the adult age. Furthermore, treatment of parental generations leads to a significant reduction of dopamine in the offspring, when both parents or just mothers are treated, and global DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation impairments resulted to be associated with the altered F1 phenotype. This study provides promising evidences that not just epigenetic alteration established during pregnancy, but also the epigenetic memory of early-life maternal perturbation can impact offspring’s health.