Ancestors' exposure to DDT may contribute to obesity, study says

Written by Tony Barboza
Published: October 23, 2013
Link: http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-obesity-ddt-ancestors-pesticides-20131023,0,6712051.story#axzz2qD97hbaX

Summary:
Exposure to the pesticide DDT could be a factor in high levels of obesity indirectly. Scientists have injected DDT into pregnant rats and observed that the offspring of do not have a change in the level of obesity, but the third generation of rats have shown dramatically higher levels of fat and weight gain even though they were not exposed to the pesticide themselves. Scientists then observed the third generation rats and found out that the chemicals known as endocrine disruptors(fungicides, dioxin and bisphenol-A, or BPA) can alter the molecular processes around their DNA by turning genes on or off and be passed down the generations. The gene altering can result in kidney disease, obesity, or ovarian disease. Recently, the World Health Organization and other global health groups have backed using the insecticide to control mosquitoes in countries with high rates of malaria because of the concern for people in the future.

Relevance:
This article is relevant to studies in class because this article discusses about gene regulation inside multicellular organisms. In Chapter 13. we learned about the regulation of genes in eukaryotes. When transcription factors are introduced to certain chemical signals, such as the endocrine disruptors, then they are activated or deactivated. This affects gene expression as certain genes are activated or deactivated, which can lead to the certain disorders such as obesity or kidney disease