Epigenesis is the process by which organisms develop from cells, using gene expression to drive cell differentiation. Stem cells initiate epigenesis, which is influenced by the environment and uses methods such as methylation to suppress or turn off genes. Aristotle first documented epigenesis, and modern biology has a good understanding of the process, which has been linked to cancer.
In biology, epigenesis refers to the concept that organisms develop from cells. Organisms consist of spores and eggs which divide in many ways. Epigenesis produces a chain of events that leads to the development of the entire plant or animal. Every organism has a unique process of epigenesis but there are common steps that all organisms must undergo.
Genes are information used by the cell to control changes in small cells. Cells use many genes all the time and some genes only a small part of the time, this is called gene expression. Epigenesis uses gene expression as the main driving force behind cell differentiation or cell changes. From the first few cells of an organism, division results in cell differentiation and gene expression, which results in the formation of different cell types.
Special cells, called stem cells, can turn into different types of cells depending on the environment the cell is in. Epigenesis is initiated by stem cells that come from the fertilized egg or spore. These early cell divisions produce stem cells that will use epigenesis to transform into billions of specific cell types.
Epigenesis is not simply a list of cues for the genetic program with which to build an organism. The whole cell plays a role in gene expression with the use of special methods. Methylation, the addition of methane molecules to genes, is commonly used to suppress a gene or turn it off. The environment also plays a key role in determining gene expression because some traits are only expressed under certain conditions. For example, training produces more muscle cells because the training lifestyle influences gene expression.
The ancient philosopher Aristotle was the first to document the process of epigenesis. He developed the idea by studying plants and animals, even though he didn’t have access to modern tools. In his time, most people believed that God created everything. Aristotle fought this view and developed an astonishingly accurate model for the developmental process. He clearly understood that some environmental factors would influence the growth process.
Modern biology has a good understanding of how organisms develop from conception. The process of gene expression and how it causes changes has been documented and studied at the molecular level. In 1939, Conrad Waddington defined epigenesis as the unfolding of the genetic program and this has led to many discoveries. Most surprisingly, the ongoing process is now related to many forms of cancer in humans.
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