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Updated: Jan 15, 2026
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Immunohistochemical Detection of 5-Methylcytosine and 5-Hydroxymethylcytosine in Developing and Postmitotic Mouse Retina
Published on: August 29, 2018
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A ternary-code DNA methylome atlas of mouse tissues
Sol Moe Lee1, David C Goldberg1, Cameron Cloud1
1Center for Computational and Genomic Medicine, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA.
Genome Biology
|October 7, 2025
Summary
This study maps 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) across mouse tissues, revealing how these epigenetic marks define cell identity and gene expression. The findings provide a new atlas for epigenetic dynamics in development and disease.
Area of Science:
- Epigenetics and Genomics
- Molecular Biology
- Biomarker Discovery
Background:
- DNA cytosine modifications like 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) are crucial epigenetic regulators.
- Understanding the interplay of these modifications (the ternary code) across different tissues is vital.
- Traditional methods face limitations in profiling the complete DNA modification landscape.
Purpose of the Study:
- To create comprehensive base-resolution maps of 5mC and 5hmC modifications across diverse mouse tissues.
- To investigate the factors influencing 5hmC distribution and its relationship with 5mC.
- To explore the utility of these modifications as biomarkers for cell identity and their correlation with gene expression.
Main Methods:
- Utilized combined bisulfite and enzymatic (bACE) conversion.
- Employed the Mouse Methylation BeadChip for high-throughput profiling.
- Generated 265 base-resolution modification maps across 29 mouse tissue types.
Main Results:
- Developed the first large-scale atlas of 5mC and 5hmC modifications across 29 mouse tissues.
- Demonstrated that 5hmC distribution is influenced by cell mitotic activity, chromatin states, and 5mC.
- Showcased the complementary role of 5hmC and 5mC in discriminating cell identity and predicting gene expression variations.
Conclusions:
- Tissue, sex, and age collectively regulate DNA cytosine modification dynamics.
- The study expands the potential for DNA modification biomarker discovery.
- Provides a valuable reference atlas for studying epigenetic dynamics in various biological contexts, including development and disease.
