Project description:Imprinted macro ncRNAs such as Airn play an important role in silencing protein-coding genes in cis, macro ncRNAs could be a common feature in all imprinted gene clusters. By applying the RNA Expression on Tiling Array (RETA) technique, macro ncRNAs were found to be abundant in 26 known mouse genomic regions containing imprinted genes were detected. All well-known imprinted macro ncRNAs were up-regulated upon depletion of DNA methylation.
Project description:In this report we assessed alterations to adult mouse brain tissue by assaying DNA cytosine methylation and small noncoding RNA (ncRNA) expression, specifically the microRNA (miRNA) and small nucleolar RNA (snoRNA) subtypes. We found long lasting alterations in DNA methylation as a result of fetal alcohol exposure, specifically in the imprinted regions of the genome harboring ncRNAs and sequences interacting with regulatory proteins. ~20% of the altered ncRNAs mapped to three imprinted regions: Snrpn-Ube3a, Dlk1-Dio3, and Sfmbt2, which showed differential methylation and have been previously implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders. The findings of this report help to expand on the mechanisms behind the long lasting changes in the brain transcriptome of FASD individuals. Comparison of fetal alcohol exposed and matched control adult C57/BL6J mice brains with olfactory bulbs removed
Project description:In this report we assessed alterations to adult mouse brain tissue by assaying DNA cytosine methylation and small noncoding RNA (ncRNA) expression, specifically the microRNA (miRNA) and small nucleolar RNA (snoRNA) subtypes. We found long lasting alterations in DNA methylation as a result of fetal alcohol exposure, specifically in the imprinted regions of the genome harboring ncRNAs and sequences interacting with regulatory proteins. ~20% of the altered ncRNAs mapped to three imprinted regions: Snrpn-Ube3a, Dlk1-Dio3, and Sfmbt2, which showed differential methylation and have been previously implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders. The findings of this report help to expand on the mechanisms behind the long lasting changes in the brain transcriptome of FASD individuals.
Project description:Genomic imprinting describes the expression of a subset of mammalian genes from one parental chromosome. The parent-of-origin specific expression of imprinted genes relies on DNA methylation of CpG-dinucleotides at differentially methylated regions (DMRs) during gametogenesis. We identified the paternally methylated DMRs at mouse chromosome 1 near the imprinted Zdbf2 gene using a methylated-DNA immunoprecipitation-on-chip (meDIP-on-chip) method applied to DNA from parthenogenetic (PG)- and androgenetic (AG)-derived cells and sperm. To identify novel DMRs, genome-wide methylation analysis of three samples were performed using MeDIP and whole genome tiling array.
Project description:Genomic imprinting describes the expression of a subset of mammalian genes from one parental chromosome. The parent-of-origin specific expression of imprinted genes relies on DNA methylation of CpG-dinucleotides at differentially methylated regions (DMRs) during gametogenesis. We identified the paternally methylated DMR at human chromosome 2 near the imprinted ZDBF2 gene using a methylated-DNA immunoprecipitation-on-chip (meDIP-on-chip) method applied to DNA from sperm. To analyze whether or not the GPR1-ZDBF2 DMR is conserved in human genome, methylation analysis of human sperm sample was performed using MeDIP and genome tiling array.
Project description:Naive pluripotent epiblast cells of the preimplantation murine embryo and their in vitro counterpart, embryonic stem (ES) cells, have the capacity to give rise to all cells of the adult. Such developmental plasticity is associated with global genome hypomethylation. It is unclear whether genome methylation is dynamically regulated only via differential expression of DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs) and Ten-eleven Translocation (TET) enzymes, which oxidase methylated DNA. Here we show that LIF/Stat3 signalling induces genomic hypomethylation via metabolic reconfiguration. In Stat3-/- ES cells we observed decreased alpha-ketoglutarate (ɑKG) production from reductive Glutamine metabolism, leading to decreased TET activity, increased Dnmt3a/b expression and to a global increase in DNA methylation. Notably, genome methylation is dynamically controlled by simply modulating αKG availability, mitochondrial activity or Stat3 activation in mitochondria, indicating effective crosstalk between metabolism and the epigenome. Stat3-/- ES cells also show increased methylation at Imprinting Control Regions accompanied with differential expression of >50% of imprinted genes. Single-cell transcriptome analysis of Stat3-/- embryos confirmed dysregulated expression of Dnmt3a/b, Tet2, and imprinted genes in vivo. Our results reveal that the LIF/Stat3 signal bridges the metabolic and epigenetic profiles of naive pluripotent cells, ultimately controlling genome methylation and imprinted gene expression. Several imprinted genes regulate cell proliferation and are often misregulated in tumors. Moreover, a wide range of cancers display Stat3-overactivation, raising the possibility that the molecular module we described here is exploited under pathological conditions.
Project description:Pluripotent stem cells are increasingly used for therapeutic models, including transplantation of neural progenitors derived from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). Recently, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), including Maternally Expressed Gene 3 (MEG3) that is derived from DLK1-DIO3 imprinted locus, were found to be expressed during neural developmental events. Their deregulations are associated with various neurological diseases. The DLK1-DIO3 imprinted locus encodes abundant non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) that are regulated by differential methylation on the locus. The aim of our research is to study the correlation between the DLK1-DIO3 derived ncRNAs and the capacity of hESC neural lineage differentiation. We classified hESCs into MEG3-ON and MEG3-OFF based on the expression levels of MEG3 as well as its downstream miRNAs by qRT-PCR. Initial embryoid body (EB) formation was conducted to examine the three germ layer differentiation ability. cDNA microarray was used to analyze the gene expression profiles of hESCs. Directed neural lineage differentiation was performed, followed by analysis of neural lineage marker expression levels and neurite formation via qRT-PCR and immunocytochemistry methods to investigate the capacity of neural differentiation in MEG3-ON and MEG3-OFF hESCs To study the correlations between the DLK1-DIO3 derived ncRNAs and differentiation capacity of hESC toward neural lineage, we classified hESCs into MEG3-ON and MEG3-OFF based on the expression levels of MEG3 by qRT-PCR and validated the methylation patterns of DLK1-DIO3 locus by bisulfite-sequencing. Then we conducted transcriptome analysis of these two groups of hESCs by cDNA microarray. This set contained 12 microarray samples, including 4 MEG3-ON hESCs, 7 MEG3-OFF hESCs, and 1 embryoid body as the negative control of pluripotentcy for pluritest.
Project description:Pluripotent stem cells are increasingly used for therapeutic models, including transplantation of neural progenitors derived from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). Recently, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), including Maternally Expressed Gene 3 (MEG3) that is derived from DLK1-DIO3 imprinted locus, were found to be expressed during neural developmental events. Their deregulations are associated with various neurological diseases. The DLK1-DIO3 imprinted locus encodes abundant non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) that are regulated by differential methylation on the locus. The aim of our research is to study the correlation between the DLK1-DIO3 derived ncRNAs and the capacity of hESC neural lineage differentiation. We classified hESCs into MEG3-ON and MEG3-OFF based on the expression levels of MEG3 as well as its downstream miRNAs by qRT-PCR. Initial embryoid body (EB) formation was conducted to examine the three germ layer differentiation ability. cDNA microarray was used to analyze the gene expression profiles of hESCs. Directed neural lineage differentiation was performed, followed by analysis of neural lineage marker expression levels and neurite formation via qRT-PCR and immunocytochemistry methods to investigate the capacity of neural differentiation in MEG3-ON and MEG3-OFF hESCs
Project description:Pluripotent stem cells are increasingly used for therapeutic models, including transplantation of neural progenitors derived from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). Recently, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), including Maternally Expressed Gene 3 (MEG3) that is derived from DLK1-DIO3 imprinted locus, were found to be expressed during neural developmental events. Their deregulations are associated with various neurological diseases. The DLK1-DIO3 imprinted locus encodes abundant non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) that are regulated by differential methylation on the locus. The aim of our research is to study the correlation between the DLK1-DIO3 derived ncRNAs and the capacity of hESC neural lineage differentiation. We classified hESCs into MEG3-ON and MEG3-OFF based on the expression levels of MEG3 as well as its downstream miRNAs by qRT-PCR. Initial embryoid body (EB) formation was conducted to examine the three germ layer differentiation ability. cDNA microarray was used to analyze the gene expression profiles of hESCs. Directed neural lineage differentiation was performed, followed by analysis of neural lineage marker expression levels and neurite formation via qRT-PCR and immunocytochemistry methods to investigate the capacity of neural differentiation in MEG3-ON and MEG3-OFF hESCs