Mitochondrial DNA copy number is regulated by DNA methylation and demethylation of POLGA in stem and cancer cells and their differentiated progeny.

ABSTRACT: Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) copy number is strictly regulated during differentiation so that cells with a high requirement for ATP generated through oxidative phosphorylation have high mtDNA copy number, whereas those with a low requirement have few copies. Using immunoprecipitation of DNA methylation on 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC), which distinguish between de novo DNA methylation and demethylation, respectively, we set out to determine whether DNA methylation at exon 2 of the human mtDNA-specific polymerase (DNA polymerase gamma A (POLGA)) regulates cell-specific mtDNA copy number in highly proliferative and terminally differentiated cells. Highly proliferative cancer and pluripotent and multipotent cells possessed low mtDNA copy number and were highly methyla

SUBMITTER: Lee W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4669800 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature