Methylation Patterns of Testis-specific Genes

Overview

Journal Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A

Specialty Science

Date 1991 Mar 15

PMID 2006171

Citations 16

Authors

M Ariel

J McCarrey

H Cedar

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The methylation patterns of genes expressed in the mouse male germ line have been examined. Int-1, Hox-2.1, and Prm-1, all of which contain 5' CpG islands, were found to be completely unmethylated at many sites in these domains, both in somatic tissues and in sperm DNA. Many other testis-specific genes have a similar structure and are probably also constitutively unmethylated. Pgk-2, a non-CpG-island gene, is similar to somatic tissue-specific genes in that it is highly methylated in nonexpressing cell types but undermethylated in pachytene spermatocytes and round spermatids, where it is actively transcribed. At later stages of spermatogenesis, however, the gene becomes remethylated and thus acquires the full modification pattern in sperm DNA. In all these cases, the sperm DNA that emerges from the testis does not contain any germ-line-specific unmethylated sites and thus carries the methylation pattern typical of that in somatic tissues.

Citing Articles

Analysis of Notch1 signaling in mammalian sperm development.

Sambe N, Yoshihara M, Nishino T, Sugiura R, Nakayama T, Louis C BMC Res Notes. 2023; 16(1):108.

PMID: 37337280 PMC: 10280896. DOI: 10.1186/s13104-023-06378-z.

Transgenerational sperm DNA methylation epimutation developmental origins following ancestral vinclozolin exposure.

Skinner M, Nilsson E, Sadler-Riggleman I, Beck D, Ben Maamar M, McCarrey J Epigenetics. 2019; 14(7):721-739.

PMID: 31079544 PMC: 6557599. DOI: 10.1080/15592294.2019.1614417.

Developmental origins of transgenerational sperm DNA methylation epimutations following ancestral DDT exposure.

Ben Maamar M, Nilsson E, Sadler-Riggleman I, Beck D, McCarrey J, Skinner M Dev Biol. 2018; 445(2):280-293.

PMID: 30500333 PMC: 6338333. DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2018.11.016.

Methylation-dependent and independent regulatory regions in the Na,K-ATPase alpha4 (Atp1a4) gene may impact its testis-specific expression.

Kumar D, Kumar P, James P Gene. 2015; 575(2 Pt 1):339-52.

PMID: 26343794 PMC: 4662617. DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2015.09.003.

Identification and characterization of methylation-dependent/independent DNA regulatory elements in the human SLC9B1 gene.

Kumar P, James P Gene. 2015; 561(2):235-48.

PMID: 25701605 PMC: 4361323. DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2015.02.050.

References

Romrell L, Bellve A, Fawcett D . Separation of mouse spermatogenic cells by sedimentation velocity. A morphological characterization. Dev Biol. 1976; 49(1):119-31. DOI: 10.1016/0012-1606(76)90262-1. View

Becker P, Ruppert S, Schutz G . Genomic footprinting reveals cell type-specific DNA binding of ubiquitous factors. Cell. 1987; 51(3):435-43. DOI: 10.1016/0092-8674(87)90639-8. View

Groudine M, Conkin K . Chromatin structure and de novo methylation of sperm DNA: implications for activation of the paternal genome. Science. 1985; 228(4703):1061-8. DOI: 10.1126/science.2986289. View

Ponzetto C, Wolgemuth D . Haploid expression of a unique c-abl transcript in the mouse male germ line. Mol Cell Biol. 1985; 5(7):1791-4. PMC: 367300. DOI: 10.1128/mcb.5.7.1791-1794.1985. View

Keshet I, Lieman-Hurwitz J, Cedar H . DNA methylation affects the formation of active chromatin. Cell. 1986; 44(4):535-43. DOI: 10.1016/0092-8674(86)90263-1. View

Willison K, Dudley K, Potter J . Molecular cloning and sequence analysis of a haploid expressed gene encoding t complex polypeptide 1. Cell. 1986; 44(5):727-38. DOI: 10.1016/0092-8674(86)90839-1. View

Krumlauf R, Holland P, Mcvey J, Hogan B . Developmental and spatial patterns of expression of the mouse homeobox gene, Hox 2.1. Development. 1987; 99(4):603-17. DOI: 10.1242/dev.99.4.603. View

Kim Y, Hwang I, Tres L, Kierszenbaum A, Chae C . Molecular cloning and differential expression of somatic and testis-specific H2B histone genes during rat spermatogenesis. Dev Biol. 1987; 124(1):23-34. DOI: 10.1016/0012-1606(87)90455-6. View

Boer P, Adra C, Lau Y, McBurney M . The testis-specific phosphoglycerate kinase gene pgk-2 is a recruited retroposon. Mol Cell Biol. 1987; 7(9):3107-12. PMC: 367943. DOI: 10.1128/mcb.7.9.3107-3112.1987. View

10.

SANFORD J, Clark H, Chapman V, Rossant J . Differences in DNA methylation during oogenesis and spermatogenesis and their persistence during early embryogenesis in the mouse. Genes Dev. 1987; 1(10):1039-46. DOI: 10.1101/gad.1.10.1039. View

11.

Cedar H . DNA methylation and gene activity. Cell. 1988; 53(1):3-4. DOI: 10.1016/0092-8674(88)90479-5. View

12.

Johnson P, Peschon J, Yelick P, Palmiter R, Hecht N . Sequence homologies in the mouse protamine 1 and 2 genes. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1988; 950(1):45-53. DOI: 10.1016/0167-4781(88)90071-1. View

13.

Kleene K, Borzorgzadeh A, FLYNN J, Yelick P, Hecht N . Nucleotide sequence of a cDNA clone encoding mouse transition protein 1. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1988; 950(2):215-20. DOI: 10.1016/0167-4781(88)90013-9. View

14.

Leroy P, Alzari P, Sassoon D, Wolgemuth D, Fellous M . The protein encoded by a murine male germ cell-specific transcript is a putative ATP-dependent RNA helicase. Cell. 1989; 57(4):549-59. DOI: 10.1016/0092-8674(89)90125-6. View

15.

Lau Y, Chan K, Sparkes R . Male-enhanced antigen gene is phylogenetically conserved and expressed at late stages of spermatogenesis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1989; 86(21):8462-6. PMC: 298302. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.86.21.8462. View

16.

Brown L, Mardon G, Luoh S, Page D . Putative transcription activator with alternative isoforms encoded by human ZFX gene. Nature. 1989; 342(6250):708-11. DOI: 10.1038/342708a0. View

17.

Fischman K, Edman J, Shackleford G, Turner J, Rutter W, Nir U . A murine fer testis-specific transcript (ferT) encodes a truncated Fer protein. Mol Cell Biol. 1990; 10(1):146-53. PMC: 360722. DOI: 10.1128/mcb.10.1.146-153.1990. View

18.

Trasler J, Hake L, Johnson P, Alcivar A, Millette C, Hecht N . DNA methylation and demethylation events during meiotic prophase in the mouse testis. Mol Cell Biol. 1990; 10(4):1828-34. PMC: 362295. DOI: 10.1128/mcb.10.4.1828-1834.1990. View

19.

Driscoll D, MIGEON B . Sex difference in methylation of single-copy genes in human meiotic germ cells: implications for X chromosome inactivation, parental imprinting, and origin of CpG mutations. Somat Cell Mol Genet. 1990; 16(3):267-82. DOI: 10.1007/BF01233363. View

20.

Hecht N, Bower P, Waters S, Yelick P, Distel R . Evidence for haploid expression of mouse testicular genes. Exp Cell Res. 1986; 164(1):183-90. DOI: 10.1016/0014-4827(86)90465-9. View