Mothers can pass traits to offspring through bacteria's DNA

(Washington University School of Medicine) A new study in mice has shown that the DNA of bacteria that live in the body can pass a trait to offspring in a way similar to the parents' own DNA. According to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the discovery means scientists need to consider a significant new factor -- the DNA of microbes passed from mother to child -- in their efforts to understand how genes influence illness and health.