Project description:To better understand the epigenetic mechanism underlying pubertal onset, the hypothalamic genome-wide chromatin accessibility patterns in mouse arcuate nucleus at early and late pubertal stages were explored. Female mice have been widely used in multiple studies on pubertal development as they present the similar molecular behaviors in HPG axis and stable cycles of menstrual calendar like human. Hypothalamic ARC underwent a huge epigenetic and genetic reprogramming to adapt to the response and feedback on sexual hormones during the stages of early pubertal (2-5-week of age) and late puberty (5-8-week of age) . We harvested 4- and 8-week hypothalamic ARC and employed ATAC-seq on a genome-wide scale. Combined with previous RRBS, RRHP and RNA-seq, the connections between DNA (hydroxyl)methylation in retroelements and gene expression were studied, emphasizing the importance of epigenetic alterations in regulating transcription in puberty onset.
Project description:To better understand the epigenetic mechanism underlying pubertal onset, the hypothalamic genome-wide DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation patterns as well as the transcription profiles in mouse arcuate nucleus at early and late pubertal stages were explored. Female mice have been widely used in multiple studies on pubertal development as they present the similar molecular behaviors in HPG axis and stable cycles of menstrual calendar like human. Hypothalamic ARC underwent a huge epigenetic and genetic reprogramming to adapt to the response and feedback on sexual hormones during the stages of early pubertal (2-5-week of age) and late puberty (5-8-week of age) . We harvested 4- and 8-week hypothalamic ARC and employed RNA-seq, reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS) and hydroxymethylation profiling (RRHP) on a genome-wide scale. We identified a large number of differential expressed genes (DEGs) and differential 5(h)mC signals across the whole genome. We discovered novel connections between DNA (hydroxyl)methylated modification and gene expression, emphasizing the importance of epigenetic alterations in regulating transcription in puberty onset.
Project description:To better understand the epigenetic mechanism underlying pubertal onset, the hypothalamic genome-wide DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation patterns as well as the transcription profiles in mouse arcuate nucleus at early and late pubertal stages were explored. Female mice have been widely used in multiple studies on pubertal development as they present the similar molecular behaviors in HPG axis and stable cycles of menstrual calendar like human. Hypothalamic ARC underwent a huge epigenetic and genetic reprogramming to adapt to the response and feedback on sexual hormones during the stages of early pubertal (2-5-week of age) and late puberty (5-8-week of age) . We harvested 4- and 8-week hypothalamic ARC and employed RNA-seq, reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS) and hydroxymethylation profiling (RRHP) on a genome-wide scale. We identified a large number of differential expressed genes (DEGs) and differential 5(h)mC signals across the whole genome. We discovered novel connections between DNA (hydroxyl)methylated modification and gene expression, emphasizing the importance of epigenetic alterations in regulating transcription in puberty onset.
Project description:Puberty marks the end of childhood and achieve sexual maturation and fertility. The role of hypothalamic proteins in regulating puberty onset is unclear. We performed a comprehensive differential proteomics and phosphoproteomics analysis in prepubertal and pubertal goats to determine the roles of hypothalamic proteins and phosphoproteins during the onset of puberty.
Project description:Neuronatin (Nnat) has previously been reported to be part of a network of imprinted genes. Disruption of neuronatin results in an unusual phenotype of a bimodal body weight.In order to understand at the molecular level how the Nnat deficiency could contribute to the hypervariable phenotypes seen, we performed RNA sequencing from laser-capture micro dissected paraventricular nucleus (PVN) and arcuate nucleus (ARC) and compared the transcriptome between Nnat+/-p mice and their Nnat+/+ littermates in different feeding conditions. We performed an analysis of three subgroups: Nnat+/+ (all non-obese), Nnat+/-p non-obese, and Nnat+/-p obese mice and combined two approaches to identify differences in hypothalamic gene expression between subgroups
Project description:We performed ATAC-seq on iPSC-derived hypothalamic arcuate-like neuron cells to identify putative regulatory elements. All samples were derived from the same individual and from the same differentiation/cell line but ATAC-seq was performed in 3 separate experiments (3 technical replicates).
Project description:Hypothalamic hamartomas (HHs) are congenital lesions of the neuroendocrine brain composed of neurons and astroglia. Frequently, HHs are associated with central precocious puberty (CPP) and/or gelastic seizures. Because HHs might express genes similar to those required for the initiation of normal puberty we used cDNA arrays to compare the gene expression profile of a HH associated with CPP with three HHs not accompanied by sexual precocity. Our aim was to identify genes whose expression may be selectively altered in the HH with CPP and hence, involved in the onset of puberty. Experiment Overall Design: Affymetrix arrays were used to detect global changes in gene expression. The results of this analysis were confirmed by semi-quantitative PCR.