Breastfeeding is well-known for its benefits of preventing communicable and non-communicable diseases. Human breastmilk consists not only of nutrients, but also of bioactive substances. What's more, the epigenetic effects of human breast milk may also play an important role. Alterations in the epigenetic regulation of genes may lead to profound changes in phenotype. Clarifying the role of human breast milk on genetic expression can potentially benefit the infant's health and his later life. This review article makes a brief summary of the epigenetic mechanism of breast milk, and its epigenetic effects on neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis, infectious diseases, metabolism syndrome, cognitive function and anaphylactic diseases.
母乳以其预防婴儿及成年期某些传染性和非传染性疾病的作用著称。母乳含有多种生物活性物质，还可能具有表观遗传效应，使子代基因的表观遗传发生改变，导致表型的可能变化。从表观遗传学角度认识母乳喂养对远期健康的影响具有深远意义，该文对母乳喂养的表观遗传学机制，及其在新生儿坏死性小肠结肠炎、感染性疾病、代谢综合征、认知功能和过敏性疾病等方面的表观遗传效应做一综述。