The possible transgenerational inheritance of acquired traits is a much debated phenomenon. Using infection of Caenorhabditis elegans by the flock house virus as a model, Rechav et al. showed non-Mendelian inheritance of the induced antiviral response over several generations. The immune memory was mediated by virus-derived small RNAs that function to silence the viral genome. The memory was transmitted independently of the original viral template.
ORIGINAL RESEARCH PAPER
Rechav, O. et al. Transgenerational inheritance of an acquired small RNA-based antiviral response in C. elegans. Cell 23 Nov 2011 (doi:10.1016/j.cell.2011.10.042)
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Stower, H. Inheritance of an acquired immune response. Nat Rev Genet 13, 3 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrg3148
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrg3148