Project description:Methylation of CpG islands is associated with transcriptional repression and, in cancer, leads to the abnormal silencing of tumor-suppressor genes. We developed a novel and robust technique that allows the unbiased, genome wide detection of CpG-methylation in limited DNA samples, without applying methylation-sensitive restriction endonucleases or bisulfite-treatment. The approach is based on a recombinant, methyl-CpG binding protein that efficiently binds CpG-methylated DNA depending on its degree of CpG methylation. Its application in methyl-CpG immunoprecipitation (MCIp) facilitates the monitoring of CpG-island methylation on a genome wide level (in combination with CpG-island microarrays). The power of this novel approach was demonstrated by the profiling of three myeloid cell lines leading to the identification of more than a hundred aberrantly methylated CpG islands and many novel, putative tumor-suppressor genes. Keywords: MCIp on Chip
Project description:DNA methylation plays a key role in demarcation of regulatory regions, including promoter-associated CpG islands. While CpG islands are typically maintained in an unmethylated state in normal cells, a proportion of CpG islands are subject to hypermethylation in cancer cells. It still remains elusive how the exquisite demarcation of the bimodal methylation state is established and maintained at the CpG island flanks and conversely what triggers the erosion of CpG island DNA methylation in tumorigenesis. Here, we applied whole-genome bisulphite sequencing to study the comprehensive methylation patterns of prostate normal and cancer tissues. Alongside we performed TET-assisted bisulphite sequencing to study genome-wide DNA hydroxymethylation patterns of normal prostate and prostate cancer tissues.
Project description:DNA methylation plays a key role in demarcation of regulatory regions, including promoter-associated CpG islands. While CpG islands are typically maintained in an unmethylated state in normal cells, a proportion of CpG islands are subject to hypermethylation in cancer cells. It still remains elusive how the exquisite demarcation of the bimodal methylation state is established and maintained at the CpG island flanks and conversely what triggers the erosion of CpG island DNA methylation in tumorigenesis. Here, we applied whole-genome bisulphite sequencing to study the comprehensive methylation patterns of prostate normal and cancer tissues. Alongside we performed TET-assisted bisulphite sequencing to study genome-wide DNA hydroxymethylation patterns of normal prostate and prostate cancer tissues.
Project description:Prior candidate gene studies have shown tumor suppressor DNA methylation in breast milk related with history of breast biopsy, an established risk factor for breast cancer. To further establish the utility of breast milk as a tissue-specific biospecimen for investigations of breast carcinogenesis we measured genome-wide DNA methylation in breast milk from women with and without a diagnosis of breast cancer in two independent cohorts. In epigenome-wide analyses we identified 58 differentially methylated CpG sites associated with breast cancer diagnosis in the prospectively collected milk samples from the breast that would develop cancer compared with women without a diagnosis of breast cancer (q-value < 0.05), using linear mixed effects models adjusted for history of breast biopsy, age, age of the baby, cell type proportion estimates, array chip, and subject as random effect. Nearly all sites associated with breast cancer diagnosis were hypomethylated in cases compared with controls, and CpG sites were enriched for CpG islands. In addition, inferred repeat element methylation was lower in breast milk DNA from cases compared to controls, and cases exhibited increased estimated epigenetic mitotic tick rate as well as DNA methylation age compared with controls. Breast milk has promise as a biospecimen for prospective assessment of disease risk, and for understanding the underlying molecular basis of breast cancer risk factors and improving primary and secondary prevention of breast cancer.
Project description:Methylation of CpG islands associated with genes can affect the expression of the proximal gene, and methylation of non associated CpG islands correlates to genomic instability. This epigenetic modification has been shown to be important in many pathologies, from development and disease to cancer. We report the development of a novel high-resolution microarray that detects the methylation status of over 25,000 CpG islands in the human genome. Experiments were performed to demonstrate low system noise in the methodology and that the array probes have a high signal to noise ratio. Methylation measurements between different cell lines were validated demonstrating the accuracy of measurement. We then identified alterations in CpG islands, both those associated with gene promoters, as well as non-promoter associated islands in a set of breast and ovarian tumors. We demonstrate that this methodology accurately identifies methylation profiles in cancer and in principle it can differentiate any CpG methylation alterations and can be adapted to analyze other species. We have developed a method to profile genome wide methylation. 12 breast normal samples and matching tumors from these individuals and an additional 28 tumor samples from other individuals were analyzed for CpG methylation. After inter array normalization, the tumor samples were taken together and the methylation compared to that of the normal samples to identify regions of the CpG islands that are significantly altered between the two datasets. Some of these regions were validated for their methylation as a proof of principle for the method.
Project description:To assess changes in DNA methylation state associated with breast cancer we analyzed DNA from normal and cancerous breast specimens on CpG islands microarray using methylation-sensitive enzyme McrBC for target preparation. Cy3 was used for McrBC cut sample, Cy5 was used for reference Mock sample.
Project description:Histone H3 mono-ubiquitination, catalyzed by the RING E3 ubiquitin ligase UHRF1, is appreciated as a docking site for DNMT1 during DNA replication to facilitate DNA methylation maintenance. Its functions beyond this are unknown. Here, we identify simultaneous increases in UHRF1-dependent H3K18ub and SUV39H1/2-dependent H3K9me3 as prominent epigenetic alterations accompanying DNA hypomethylation induced by DNMT1 inhibition. Integrative epigenomics analyses reveal that transient accumulation of hemi-methylated DNA, resulting from incomplete DNA methylation maintenance, stimulates UHRF1-dependent H3K18ub at CpG islands that nucleates new domains of H3K9me3 and impedes PRC2 activity in these genomic regions. Notably, H3K18ub enhances the methyltransferase activity of SUV39H1/2, leading to increased H3K9me3 at these CpG island promoters. Blocking H3K18ub-dependent SUV39H1/2 activity enhances the efficacy of DNMT1 inhibitors. Collectively, these findings reveal a novel histone ubiquitination-methylation crosstalk mechanism that reinforces heterochromatin states in the absence of DNA methylation and proposes new strategies for improving cancer epigenetic therapy.