DNA methylation-linked chromatin accessibility affects genomic architecture in Arabidopsis
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ABSTRACT: DNA methylation is one of the most widely distributed epigenetic marks that has a profound impact on developmental regulation, yet its influence on chromatin accessibility and 3D genome architecture is not well explored in plants. Here, we present genome-wide chromatin accessibility profiles of 18 Arabidopsis mutants that are deficient in CG, CHG or CHH DNA methylation. We find that chromatin inaccessibility at heterochromatin regions are maintained by DNA methylation in all three contexts. Many regions maintain their chromatin inaccessibility when DNA methylation is lost in only one or two contexts but we found the most increase in accessibility at sites that shown DNA methylation reduction in all contexts, suggesting an interplay between CG and non-CG methylation and chromatin accessibility. In addition, we observed that an increase in chromatin accessibility is accompanied with chromatin decompaction of many transposable elements, which leads to heterochromatin decompaction and an enhancement of long-range chromosomal interactions in the 3D genome architecture. Together, these results provide a valuable resource for chromatin compaction analyses and uncover a pivotal role for DNA methylation in the maintenance of heterochromatin inaccessibility in Arabidopsis.
ORGANISM(S): Arabidopsis thaliana
PROVIDER: GSE155503 | GEO | 2021/01/25
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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