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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2013 Feb 1.
Published in final edited form as: Semin Reprod Med. 2009 Aug 26;27(5):403–408. doi: 10.1055/s-0029-1237428

Table 1.

Definition of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Epigenetic Transgenerational Processes

Intrinsic epigenetic transgenerational process:
    Epigenetic changes in the germ line triggered during embryonic germ cell development that become transgenerationally transmitted in the absence of any subsequent environmental stimuli.
Extrinsic epigenetic transgenerational process:
    Epigenetic changes triggered during an organism's development (embryo, postnatal, puberty, adult) that become transgenerational only due to a persistent environmental exposure, generation after generation.