Sperm methylation profiles reveal features of epigenetic inheritance and evolution in primates.

ABSTRACT: During germ cell and preimplantation development, mammalian cells undergo nearly complete reprogramming of DNA methylation patterns. We profiled the methylomes of human and chimp sperm as a basis for comparison to methylation patterns of ESCs. Although the majority of promoters escape methylation in both ESCs and sperm, the corresponding hypomethylated regions show substantial structural differences. Repeat elements are heavily methylated in both germ and somatic cells; however, retrotransposons from several subfamilies evade methylation more effectively during male germ cell development, whereas other subfamilies show the opposite trend. Comparing methylomes of human and chimp sperm revealed a subset of differentially methylated promoters and strikingly divergent methylation in retrotrans

SUBMITTER: Molaro A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3205962 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature