Scott Kelly floated around space in the International Space Station for a year and was obviously different from Mark Kelly, his identical twin – he was taller. (Science Oct 28, 2017)
The brothers pioneered a NASA Twins Study which compared Mark’s grounded lifestyle with Scott’s spaceflight journey. The scientists discovered an increase in Scott’s methylation rate – a process that turns gene activity on and off.
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“There are over 50,000 genes in the human genome, and when floating in zero gravity, the body is trying to manage that situation in new ways,” Chris Mason, one of the principal investigators of the Twin Study and a geneticist at Weill Cornell Medicine, told PBS NewsHour. “Both DNA and RNA were found to express genes in order to compensate for a lifestyle in space.”
DNA methylation modifies a gene, dictating whether or not expression of that gene can happen in the first place which leads to changes in the cell function. “And sometimes gene expression might produce cases where some risk factors and positive responses appear together,” Mason said.
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Epigenetics determines a cell’s specialization through (a) nature: (e.g., skin cell, blood cell, hair cell, liver cells, etc.) as a fetus develops into a baby through gene expression (active) or silencing (dormant); and (b) nurture: environmental stimuli can also cause genes to be turned off or turned on. (Epigenetics for Total Beginners 7/10/2019)
Epigenetics is everywhere. What you eat, where you live, who you interact with, when you sleep, how you exercise, even aging – all of these can eventually cause chemical modifications around the genes that will turn these genes on or off over time.
Coronaviruses are not a new family of viruses and are common in different species of animals including camels, cattle, cats, and bats. In humans, there are multiple strains that can cause mild respiratory symptoms or even the common cold. In years prior, other strains have been associated with SARS and MERS. (What is Coronavirus Disease COVID-19 Gabriella Borter)
COVID-19 is spread person-to-person among close contacts via respiratory droplets from a cough or sneeze. Touching infected surfaces and then touching your nose, mouth, or eyes, can also not only infect yourself but spread COVID-19.
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Proper hand hygiene and social distancing are critical to helping reduce the spread of COVID-19 and the prevention of other infectious diseases. (Ernest J. Grant, PhD, RN, FAAN President, American Nurses Association).
As of May 18, 2020, there were over 4.8 million global cases of COVID-19. 1.8 million people have recovered from the disease, where there had been around 316,700 deaths. The United States, Spain, and the United Kingdom have been the three countries hardest hit by the pandemic. (Statistica)
The SARS-CoV-2 virus is the seventh known coronavirus to infect humans; its emergence makes in the third in recent years to cause widespread infectious disease, following the viruses responsible for SARS and MERS.
The basic biology of the COVID-19 virus is well understood, making it possible to decide which current drugs have a chance of success. (Statistica)
We know the basic biology of the virus and we have unraveled our own human basic biology and unfortunately, these two mechanisms have collided. We are weathering the battle albeit at a blistering toll on our health, financial, and social systems.
The 1.8 million people who have recovered from COVID-19 may carry a methylation tag on their DNA. This group also includes people who are asymptomatic and unaware that they were exposed to COVID-19. This tag, wrapping around the DNA double helix of COVID-19 survivors, could be transmitted to the next generation making them immune to the disease – unknowingly passing immunity to their children and possibly grandchildren.
Methylation’s chemical tags don’t interfere with DNA it influences the expression of DNA signaling an “on” or “off” switch. Think of these tags as “post-it” notes that highlight particular genes with information about whether they should be switched on or off. (Epigenetics – It’s not just genes that make us 7/29/2018)
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So, as our next generation appears on the scene, they may have an inherited immunity to COVID-19 that we do not have. We are facing this unbelievable, horrid, unseen-virus that attacks worldwide without mercy both young and old alike. It’s a formidable foe.
We’ll survive our time in this uncharted land but we’ll be changed just as Scott Kelly was changed after his time in the unknown of outer space.
