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Published on: August 29, 2018
Widespread and tissue specific age-related DNA methylation changes in mice
Shinji Maegawa1, George Hinkal, Hyun Soo Kim
1Department of Leukemia, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77030, USA.
Genome Research
|January 29, 2010
Summary
Aging is associated with widespread DNA methylation changes in mouse intestines, impacting gene expression. This epigenetic deregulation is common in mammals and shows tissue-specific patterns.
Area of Science:
- Epigenetics
- Genomics
- Aging Research
Background:
- Aberrant DNA methylation in promoter CpG islands is linked to cancer and tumor suppressor gene silencing.
- Age-dependent hypermethylation in normal tissues may indicate cancer risk, but its tissue specificity is unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate age-related DNA methylation patterns in mouse intestine.
- To determine if age-related methylation is conserved across different tissues and species.
Main Methods:
- Comprehensive DNA methylation profiling of promoter regions in aging C57BL/6 mice (3-mo vs. 35-mo) using methylated CpG island amplification and microarray analysis.
- Quantitative validation of microarray data using pyrosequencing.
- Examination of age-related methylation changes in lung, liver, and spleen tissues.
Main Results:
- Significant age-related hypermethylation (21%) and hypomethylation (13%) were observed in mouse intestinal genes.
- Age-related methylation changes showed tissue specificity, with varying degrees of conservation between mouse and human intestines.
- Polycomb targets in embryonic stem cells were enriched among hypermethylated genes.
Conclusions:
- Epigenetic deregulation, including widespread hyper- and hypomethylation, is a common feature of aging in mammals.
- Age-related DNA methylation exhibits significant tissue specificity.
- Findings suggest a conserved epigenetic component to mammalian aging.
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