Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

The role and mechanisms of DNA methylation in the oocyte

2019; Portland Press; Volume: 63; Issue: 6 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1042/ebc20190043

1744-1358

Gintarė Sendžikaitė, Gavin Kelsey,

Reproductive Biology and Fertility

Abstract Epigenetic information in the mammalian oocyte has the potential to be transmitted to the next generation and influence gene expression; this occurs naturally in the case of imprinted genes. Therefore, it is important to understand how epigenetic information is patterned during oocyte development and growth. Here, we review the current state of knowledge of de novo DNA methylation mechanisms in the oocyte: how a distinctive gene-body methylation pattern is created, and the extent to which the DNA methylation machinery reads chromatin states. Recent epigenomic studies building on advances in ultra-low input chromatin profiling methods, coupled with genetic studies, have started to allow a detailed interrogation of the interplay between DNA methylation establishment and chromatin states; however, a full mechanistic description awaits.