Genes & the Inheritance of Memories Across Generations | Dr. Oded Rechavi

**Andrew D. Huberman** (0:00)
Welcome to the Huberman Lab podcast, where we discuss science and science-based tools for everyday life.
I'm Andrew Huberman, and I'm a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine. Today, my guest is Dr. Oded Rechavi. Dr. Oded Rechavi is a professor of neurobiology at Tel Aviv University in Israel. His laboratory studies genetic inheritance. Now, everybody is familiar with genetic inheritance as the idea that we inherit genes from our parents. And indeed, that is true. Many people are also probably now aware of the so-called epigenome, that is ways in which our environment and experiences can change our genome and therefore the genes that we inherit or pass on to our children. What is less known, however, and what is discussed today is the evidence that we can actually pass on traits that relate to our experiences. That's right. There is evidence in worms, in flies, in mice, and indeed in human beings, that memories can indeed be passed from one generation to the next. And that turns out to be just the tip of the iceberg in terms of how our parents' experiences and our experiences can be passed on from one generation to the next, both in terms of modifying the biological circuits of the brain and body and the psychological consequences of those biological changes. During today's episode, Dr. Rechavi gives us a beautiful description of how genetics work. So even if you don't have a background in biology or science, by the end of today's episode, you will understand the core elements of genetics and the genetic passage of traits from one generation to the next. In addition, he makes it clear how certain experiences can indeed modify our genes such that they are passed from our parents to us and even transgenerationally across multi-generations. That is, one generation could experience something and their grandchildren would still have genetic modifications that reflect those prior experiences of their grandparents. Dr. Rechavi takes us on an incredible journey explaining how our genes and different patterns of inheritance shape our experience of life and who we are. Before we begin, I'd like to emphasize that this podcast is separate from my teaching and research roles at Stanford. It is, however, part of my desire and effort to bring zero cost to consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public. In keeping with that theme, I'd like to thank the sponsors of today's podcast. Our first sponsor is Roca. Roca makes eyeglasses and sunglasses that are the absolute highest quality. The company was founded by two all-American swimmers from Stanford, and everything about Roca eyeglasses and sunglasses were designed with performance in mind. I've spent a lifetime working on the biology of the visual system, and I can tell you that your visual system has to contend with an enormous number of challenges in order for you to be able to see clearly under any conditions. 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And most people, including myself, do not follow a ketogenic diet. That does not, however, mean that ketones cannot be valuable because ketones are one of the primary sources of brain fuel and body fuel that allows us to think clearly for long durations of time and to perform well physically. Which is all to say that even if you're somebody who's not on a ketogenic diet, such as myself, increasing your blood ketones can be immensely beneficial for cognitive and physical performance. Indeed, that's how I use ketone IQ. I'll take one or two servings per day, typically, sometimes before a workout, but most typically before doing a bout of cognitive work. So I'm going to sit down and prepare a podcast or focus on research for my lab or a writing project or anything that requires a high degree of concentration for a prolonged period of time. 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