Premium
Oxidized Cytosine Metabolites Offer a Fresh Perspective for Active DNA Demethylation
Author(s) -
Ladwein Kathrin I.,
Jung Manfred
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201106690
Subject(s) - cytosine , dna demethylation , demethylation , dna , 5 hydroxymethylcytosine , methyltransferase , nucleobase , chemistry , 5 methylcytosine , dna methylation , biochemistry , methylation , gene , gene expression
DNA methyltransferases catalyze the transfer of methyl groups to cytosines within DNA. Afterwards, 5‐methylcytosine is oxidized to 5‐hydroxymethylcytosine. Two further cytosine derivatives, 5‐formylcytosine and 5‐carboxycytosine, have been discovered recently. The existence of the seventh and eighth nucleobase provides new hints for deciphering the process of active DNA demethylation (see scheme).