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Sperm histone H3 lysine 4 trimethylation is altered in a genetic mouse model of transgenerational epigenetic inheritance

ABSTRACT: Advancing the molecular knowledge surrounding fertility and inheritance has become critical given the halving of sperm counts in the last 40 years, and the rise in complex disease which cannot be explained by genetics alone. The connection between both these trends may lie in alterations to the sperm epigenome and occur through environmental exposures. Changes to the sperm epigenome are also associated with health risks across generations such as metabolic disorders and cancer. Thus it is imperative to identify the epigenetic modifications that escape reprogramming during spermatogenesis. Here, we aimed to identify the chromatin signature(s) associated with transgenerational phenotypes in our genetic mouse model of epigenetic inheritance that overexpresses the histone demethylase KDM1A in their germ cells. We used sperm-specific chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by in depth sequencing (ChIP-seq), and computational analysis to identify whether differential enrichment of histone H3 lysine 4 trimethylation (H3K4me3), and histone H3 lysine 27 trimethylation (H3K27me3) serve as mechanisms for transgenerational epigenetic inheritance through the paternal germline. Our analysis on the sperm of KDM1A transgenic males revealed specific changes in H3K4me3 enrichment that occurred independently from non-bivalent H3K4me3/H3K27me3 regions. Many regions with altered H3K4me3 enrichment in sperm were identified on the paternal allele of the pre-implantation embryo. These findings suggest that sperm H3K4me3 functions in the transmission of non-genetic phenotypes transgenerationally.

ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus

PROVIDER: GSE145679 | GEO | 2020/10/15

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Purpose: Paternal life experiences impact offspring health via germline, and epigenetic inheritance provides a potential mechanism. However, global reprogramming during offspring embryogenesis and gametogenesis represents the largest hurdle to conceptualize it. Yet, detailed characterization of how sperm epigenetic alterations carrying “environmental memory” can evade offspring embryonic reprogramming remains elusive. Methods: we profiled the sperm DNA methylation patterns of three consecutive generations (F0, F1 and F2) in both control and stress groups by using whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS). A total of 18 sperm samples were analyzed, including three biological replicates for each generation under each treatment. In addition, small RNA sequencing was carried out on paternal sperm samples to investigate whether long-term psychological stress affected the enrichment of certain sncRNAs and to identify whether they participated in mediating the occurrence and paternal inheritance of the stress-induced DMRs Rsults: Using an optimized data analysis workflow, we obtained approximately 800 million clean reads per sample (build mm10) with strand-specific coverage ~21×, and the data covered ~96.00% of the total 21,867,837 reference CpG dinucleotides. A total of 24,427, 7,975, and 5,173 differentially methylated regions (DMRs) between control and stress groups were found in the F0, F1, and F2 generations, respectively. Inter- and transgenerational inheritance of paternal DMRs were at frequencies approximately 11.36% and 0.48%, respectively. These DMRs related to genes with functional implications for psychological stress response, and tissue inheritance of these DMRs passed paternal disorders epigenetically to offspring. More importantly, these DMRs evaded offspring embryonic reprogramming through erasure and subsequent reestablishment, but not via un-erasure way. Nonetheless, their reestablishment proportions in the primitive streak (E7.5) stage were altered. Furthermore, sncRNA-seq revealed that stress-induced tsRNA, miRNA and rsRNA dysregulation in paternal sperm might play important roles in DMRs occurrence and paternal inheritance.

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Sperm histone H3 lysine 4 trimethylation is altered in a genetic mouse model of transgenerational epigenetic inheritance

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