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Genome methylation of the marine annelid worm Chaetopterus variopedatus : methylation of a CpG in an expressed H1 histone gene
Author(s) -
del Gaudio Rosanna,
Di Giaimo Rossella,
Geraci Giuseppe
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/s0014-5793(97)01262-3
Subject(s) - biology , dna methylation , methylation , genomic dna , dna , histone , annelid , microbiology and biotechnology , gene , restriction enzyme , genetics , gene expression , anatomy
Hydrolysis by methylation‐dependent restriction enzymes shows that the genomic DNA of the polychaete annelid worm Chaetopterus variopedatus is methylated. Electrophoretic analyses of the digestion products indicate that the degree of methylation is lower in adult tissues than in sperm and embryonic DNA. 5‐Methylcytosine was identified by HPLC, absorption spectroscopy and mass spectrometry analyses of free bases obtained by acid hydrolysis of the DNA. An average value of 1.6% methylated cytosines was determined in sperm DNA. Partial methylation was also found in an actively expressed H1 histone gene. This is the first time that genomic DNA methylation is demonstrated to occur in a worm.