Abstract: The present invention provides animal models and methods for the evaluation of maternal treatments that could improve or compromise the epigenetic state, the imprinting, or the DNA methylation and thus the health or disease propensity, of human or other mammalian offspring. In particular, the present invention provides animal models with naturally occurring epigenetic variation for the evaluation of treatments through effects on the epigenetically determined and imprinted characteristics of coat color, coat color pattern, DNA methylation, long terminal repeat (LTR) expression and LTR activity of offspring.

Abstract: The present invention provides animal models and methods for the evaluation of maternal treatments that could improve or compromise the epigenetic state, the imprinting, or the DNA methylation and thus the health or disease propensity, of human or other mammalian offspring. In particular, the present invention provides animal models with naturally occurring epigenetic variation for the evaluation of treatments through effects on the epigenetically determined and imprinted characteristics of coat color, coat color pattern, DNA methylation, long terminal repeat (LTR) expression and LTR activity of offspring.

Abstract: Increasing methylation of DNA in an unborn offspring of a pregnant mammal results in changing the epigenetically determined phenotype of the unborn offspring, inhibiting parasitic DNA sequences in the unborn offspring, and/or reducing susceptibility to tumor formation in the unborn offspring. Increased methylation is achieved by administering to the pregnant mammal a pharmaceutical composition which includes at least three of the following: Choline, Betaine, Folic acid, Vitamin B12, L-Methionine, and Zinc. The effective amount for each of these ingredients is: about 5-15 g/kg diet/day of Choline, about 5-15 g/kg diet/day of Betaine, about 5-15 mg/kg diet/day of Folic acid, about 0.5-1.5 mg/kg diet/day of Vitamin B12, about 0 to 7.5 g/kg diet/day of L-Methionine, and about 0 to 150 mg/kg diet/day of Zinc.