High preservation of CpG cytosine methylation patterns at imprinted gene loci in liver and brain of aged mice.

ABSTRACT: A gradual loss of the correct patterning of 5-methyl cytosine marks in gene promoter regions has been implicated in aging and age-related diseases, most notably cancer. While a number of studies have examined DNA methylation in aging, there is no consensus on the magnitude of the effects, particularly at imprinted loci. Imprinted genes are likely candidate to undergo age-related changes because of their demonstrated plasticity in utero, for example, in response to environmental cues. Here we quantitatively analyzed a total of 100 individual CpG sites in promoter regions of 11 imprinted and non-imprinted genes in liver and cerebral cortex of young and old mice using mass spectrometry. The results indicate a remarkably high preservation of methylation marks during the aging process in both o

SUBMITTER: Gravina S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3767788 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature