[Script Info] Title: [Events] Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So it all came to life Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in a dark bar in Madrid. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I encountered my colleague\Nfrom McGill, Michael Meaney. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And we were drinking a few beers, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and like scientists do, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he told me about his work. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And he told me that he is interested Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in how mother rats Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,lick their pups Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,after they were born. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I was sitting there and saying, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this is where my tax dollars are wasted, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on this kind of soft science. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And started telling me Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that when the rats, like humans, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,lick their pups in very different ways. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some mothers do a lot of that, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,some mothers do very little, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and most are in between. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But what's interesting about it Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is when he follows these pups\Nwhen they become adults, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,like years in human life, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,long after their mother died, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they are completely different animals. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The animals that were licked\Nand groomed heavily, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the high licking and grooming, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are not stressed. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They have different sexual behavior. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They have a different way of living Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,than those that were not treated Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as intensively by their mothers. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So then I was thinking to myself, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is this magic? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,How does this work? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Us geneticists would like you to think Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,perhaps the mother had\Nthe bad mother gene Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that caused her pups to be stressful, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and then it was passed\Nfrom generation to generation. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's all determined by genetics. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Or is it possible that something else Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is going on? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So in rats we can ask this question Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and answer it. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So what we did is\Na cross-fostering experiment. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You essentially separate the litter, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the babies of this rat, at birth, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to two kinds of fostering mothers, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,not the real mothers, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but mothers that will take care of them, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,high-licking mothers\Nand low-licking mothers. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And you can do the opposite\Nwith the low-licking pups. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the remarkable answer was, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it wasn't important Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what the gene you got from your mother. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was not the biological mother\Nthat defined this property Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of these rats. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It is the mother that\Ntook care of the pups. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So how can this work? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I am an a epigeneticist. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I am interested Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in how genes are marked by a chemical mark Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,during embryogenesis, during the time\Nwe're in the womb of our mothers, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and decide which gene will be expressed Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in what tissue. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Different genes are expressed in the brain\Nthan in the liver and the eye. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And we thought, is it possible Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that the mother is somehow Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,reprogramming the gene of her offspring Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,through her behavior? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And we spent 10 years, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and we found that there is\Na cascade of biochemical events Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by which the licking and grooming\Nof the mother, the care of the mother Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is translated to biochemical signals Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that go into the nucleus and into the DNA Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and program it differently. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So now the animal can\Nprepare itself for life. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Is life going to be harsh? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Is there going to be a lot of food? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Are there going to be a lot\Nof cats and snakes around, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or will I live in an upper\Nclass neighborhood Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where all I have to do\Nis behave well and proper Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and that will gain me social acceptance? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And now one can think about\Nhow important that process can be Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for our lives. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We inherit our DNA from our ancestors. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The DNA is old. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It evolved during evolution. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But it doesn't tell us if you are going\Nto be born in Stockholm, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where the days are long in the summer\Nand short in the winter, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or in Ecuador, where equal number\Nof hours for day and night Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,all year round. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that has such an enormous amount\Non our physiology. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So what we suggest is perhaps\Nwhat happens early in life, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,those signals that come through the mother Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,tell the child Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what kind of social world\Nyou're going to be living in. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It will be harsh, and you'd better\Nbe anxious and be stressful, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or it's going to be an easy world,\Nand you have to be different. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Is it going to be a world\Nwith a lot of light or little light? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Is it going to be a world\Nwith a lot of food or little food? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If there's no food around, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you'd better develop your brain\Nto binge whenever you see a meal, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or store every piece of food\Nthat you have as fat. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So this is good. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Evolution has selected this Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to allow our fixed, old DNA Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to function in a dynamic way Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in new environments.