Institution: | a Life Science, Advanced Research Institute for the Sciences and Humanities, Nihon University, 12-5, Goban-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-8251 b Division of Cancer Genetics, Department of Advanced Medical Science, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi, Kami-cho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-861, Japan c Department of Pathology, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi, Kami-cho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-861, Japan d Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Elm and Carlton Streets, Buffalo, NY 14263, USA e Department of Cancer Genetics, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Elm and Carlton Streets, Buffalo, NY 14263, USA |
Abstract: | Tissue-specific differentially methylated regions (tDMRs) have been identified and implicated for their indispensable involvement in mammalian development and tissue differentiation. In this report, a quantitative DNA methylation analysis was performed for 13 human orthologous regions of recently confirmed mouse tDMRs by using Sequenom Mass Array, by which bisulfite-treated fragments are quantitatively detected using time of flight mass spectroscopy analysis. Eight regions were shown as tDMRs in various tissues from three independent individuals. Testis DNA samples from eight individuals were also analyzed for methylation. Interestingly, there is evidence that the DNA methylation level is divergent among individuals. DNA methylation levels of five testis-specific DMRs were significantly inversely correlated with the number of spermatocytes. However, a positive correlation was seen at tDMRs located near the TRIM38 and CASZ1 genes. Our results indicate that tDMRs are conserved between mouse and human and may have an important role in regulating tissue function, differentiation, and aging. |