Paternal transmission of behavioural and metabolic traits induced by postnatal stress to the 5th generation in mice.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Animal experimental study with no direct human data
PubMed 36518875 · doi:10.1093/eep/dvac024
What was done
Researchers investigated whether behavioral and metabolic alterations induced by early postnatal stress in male mice transmit paternally beyond the 4th generation. They evaluated risk-taking behavior and glucose regulation in the 5th and 6th generations of descendants.
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical values, effect sizes, or test statistics. Postnatal stress phenotypes—specifically altered risk-taking behavior and glucose dysregulation—persisted in the 5th generation of the patriline but attenuated in the 6th generation. Some symptoms manifested in both sexes, whereas others were sex-dependent and sometimes opposite in direction.
Why it matters
This study demonstrates that non-genetic, paternal inheritance of trauma-induced metabolic and behavioral traits can persist for up to five generations in mammals before diminishing.
Limits
The findings are from a mouse model and may not directly translate to human biology. The abstract does not provide sample sizes (n), numerical effect sizes, variance estimates, or the specific epigenetic mechanisms mediating the transmission or attenuation.
Cited by
- context Research in mice shows that deeply traumatized baby mice require three generations to return to a normal nervous system state.