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Updated: May 3, 2026

Enhanced Reduced Representation Bisulfite Sequencing for Assessment of DNA Methylation at Base Pair Resolution
Published on: February 24, 2015
Reversing DNA methylation: mechanisms, genomics, and biological functions
1Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard Medical School, WAB-149G, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, WAB-149G, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, WAB-149G, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard Medical School, WAB-149G, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Abstract:
Methylation of cytosines in the mammalian genome represents a key epigenetic modification and is dynamically regulated during development. Compelling evidence now suggests that dynamic regulation of DNA methylation is mainly achieved through a cyclic enzymatic cascade comprised of cytosine methylation, iterative oxidation of methyl group by TET dioxygenases, and restoration of unmodified cytosines by either replication-dependent dilution or DNA glycosylase-initiated base excision repair. In this review, we discuss the mechanism and function of DNA demethylation in mammalian genomes, focusing particularly on how developmental modulation of the cytosine-modifying pathway is coupled to active reversal of DNA methylation in diverse biological processes.
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