Epigenetic modifications on X chromosomes in marsupial and monotreme mammals and implications for evolution of dosage compensation.

ABSTRACT: X chromosome dosage compensation in female eutherian mammals is regulated by the noncoding Xist RNA and is associated with the differential acquisition of active and repressive histone modifications, resulting in repression of most genes on one of the two X chromosome homologs. Marsupial mammals exhibit dosage compensation; however, they lack Xist, and the mechanisms conferring epigenetic control of X chromosome dosage compensation remain elusive. Oviparous mammals, the monotremes, have multiple X chromosomes, and it is not clear whether they undergo dosage compensation and whether there is epigenetic dimorphism between homologous pairs in female monotremes. Here, using antibodies against DNA methylation, eight different histone modifications, and HP1, we conduct immunofluorescence on soma

SUBMITTER: Rens W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2955130 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature