Epigenetics and Responsibility, Ethical Perspectives

Year

2024

Publisher

Bristol University Press

Language

English

Pages

ISBN

978-1-52922-544-0

Link

Last Update

18-May-2026

Keywords

General Science

Description

Epigenetics is a fast-growing field in molecular biology. It studies the ways in which modifications to DNA affect gene expression and cell functioning (Carlberg and Molnár, 2019), providing an interface between the genetic and the environmental. The difference between epigenetics and genetics is located in the prefix ‘epi’, meaning that epigenetic mechanisms are something upon, attached to, or beyond genetics.¹ Epigenetic information may be regarded as another layer beyond genomic information that not only enriches but also challenges insights from more traditional understandings of genetics. The central ‘dogma’ of genetics is the idea that there is a oneway progression, whereby...