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Updated: Oct 23, 2025

Immunohistochemical Detection of 5-Methylcytosine and 5-Hydroxymethylcytosine in Developing and Postmitotic Mouse Retina
Published on: August 29, 2018
DNA methylation plays important roles in retinal development and diseases
Jing Wu1, Lin-Lin Liu2, Miao Cao3
1Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment of Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Diseases of Ministry of Education, Gannan Medical University, Ganzhou, 341000, Jiangxi Province, China; Department of Ophthalmology, Lishui Municipal Central Hospital, Lishui, 323000, Zhejiang Province, China.
Abstract:
DNA methylation is important in developing and post-mitotic cells in various tissues. Recent studies have shown that DNA methylation is highly dynamic, and plays important roles during retinal development and aging. In addition, the dynamic regulation of DNA methylation is involved in the occurrence and development of age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy and shows potential in disease diagnoses and prognoses. This review introduces the epigenetic concepts of DNA methylation and demethylation with an emphasis on their regulatory roles in retinal development and related diseases. Moreover, we propose exciting ideas such as its crosstalk with other epigenetic modifications and retinal regeneration, to provide a potential direction for understanding retinal diseases from the epigenetic perspective.
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