Unusual DNA packaging characteristics in endoreduplicated Caenorhabditis elegans oocytes defined by in vivo accessibility to an endogenous nuclease activity.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Germ cells in animals are highly specialized to preserve the genome. A distinct set of chromatin structures must be properly established in germ cells to maintain cell fate and genome integrity. We describe DNA-surface interactions in activated Caenorhabditis elegans oocytes that are revealed through the activity of an endogenous nuclease ('endocleavage').

Results

Our analysis began with an unexpected observation that a majority (>50%) of DNA from ovulated but unfertilized C. elegans oocytes can be recovered in fragments of approximately 500 base pairs or shorter, cleaved at regular intervals (10 to 11 nt) along the DNA helix. In some areas of the genome, DNA cleavage patterns in these endoreduplicated oocytes appear consistent from cell-to-cell, indicating cohere

SUBMITTER: Gu S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3819648 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature