New-born baby

The EpiGen Consortium is an international alliance of the world’s leading epigenetics and metabolic programming researchers (including scientists from AgResearch and Auckland UniServices Limited in New Zealand) that aims to develop recommendations, supported by robust science, for the best maternal and infant nutrition strategies to promote metabolic health throughout life.

Focus on epigenetics

The studies will focus on epigenetics – the biology of how gene function is regulated by environmental factors, such as maternal nutrition, during the very early stages of development – not so much ‘you are what you eat’ but ‘you are what you and your mother ate’.

“This new partnership presents a unique opportunity to work with industry on multidisciplinary research that recognises the importance of early life nutrition in underpinning lifelong health,” says Professor Wayne Cutfield, Director of The University of Auckland’s Liggins Institute, which is represented in EpiGen by Auckland UniServices Limited.

Real impact on human health

Dr Peter Lee, Chief Executive of Auckland UniServices Limited, also commented on the significance of the new partnership. “This collaboration will have a real impact on human health but also on the ability of EpiGen to reach its full potential. UniServices has played a major role in EpiGen since its establishment in 2006 and we will continue to support EpiGen’s exceptional science and drive the development of real-world applications.”

Other EpiGen researchers come from the University of Southampton’s Medical Research Council – Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) and the National University of Singapore. EpiGen’s mandate is to identify and understand the epigenetic modifications of specific genes by environmental factors that occur early in life. The aim of on-going studies managed by EpiGen is to develop biomarkers and targeted interventions as well as new technology platforms for epigenomic research.