Urbanization is associated with modifications in DNA methylation in a small passerine bird.

ABSTRACT: Urbanization represents a fierce driver of phenotypic change, yet the molecular mechanisms underlying observed phenotypic patterns are poorly understood. Epigenetic changes are expected to facilitate more rapid adaption to changing or novel environments, such as our towns and cities, compared with slow changes in gene sequence. A comparison of liver and blood tissue from great tits Parus major originating from an urban and a forest site demonstrated that urbanization is associated with variation in genome-wide patterns of DNA methylation. Combining reduced representation bisulphite sequencing with transcriptome data, we revealed habitat differences in DNA methylation patterns that suggest a regulated and coordinated response to the urban environment. In the liver, genomic sites that

SUBMITTER: Watson H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7819559 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature