The genome of the stick insect Medauroidea extradentata is strongly methylated within genes and repetitive DNA.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Cytosine DNA methylation has been detected in many eukaryotic organisms and has been shown to play an important role in development and disease of vertebrates including humans. Molecularly, DNA methylation appears to be involved in the suppression of initiation or of elongation of transcription. Resulting organismal functions are suggested to be the regulation of gene silencing, the suppression of transposon activity and the suppression of initiation of transcription within genes. However, some data concerning the distribution of methylcytosine in insect species appear to contradict such roles.

Principal findings

By comparison of MspI and HpaII restriction patterns in genomic DNA of several insects we show that stick insects (Phasmatodea) have highly methylated ge

SUBMITTER: Krauss V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2747282 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature