Review: Biological imprinting: Some genetic considerations

Abstract

Genetic imprinting represents one of the most puzzling, still unexplained, phenomena in genetics. Changing some agreed upon concepts and redefinition of some common traditional terms in classical genetics seems imperative for understanding the nature of imprinting, as well as for interpretation of possible mechanisms implicated in its occurrence.

Keywords: Genetic imprinting; Mutations; Re-sense mutation; Epigenetic alterations; DNA methylation/demethylation; Parthenogenesis; Position-effect variegation; Post-fertilization genomic imprinting; microRNA; Chromatin modifications; Pyknons