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Genome-wide Analysis Of DNA Methylation Pattern Variations In Sperm

Posted on:2015-08-15Degree:MasterType:Thesis
Country:ChinaCandidate:C Y ZhangFull Text:PDF
GTID:2180330467480017Subject:Bioinformatics
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
DNA methylation is an important epigenetic modification, playing significant roles in many biological processes including cell differentiation, embryonic development, and genomic imprinting. A growing body of evidence indicates DNA methylation is tissue specific and varies among individuals. In addition, methylation heterogeneity may be associated with genetic variations and phenotypic diversities among distinct cell subsets. Thus, within a mixed cell population, substantial variations may be observed in DNA methylation patterns.As haploid cells, sperms have some unique molecular characteristics, including sperm-specific DNA methylation at the epigenome level. In order to study the DNA methylation variations observed in sperm, we explored bioinformatics methods to analyze bisulfite sequencing data for sperms from two chimpanzee and two human individuals. The methylation data were obtained from GEO database. We observed similar DNA methylation patterns in sperm cells from different individuals of the same species, including similar methylation distributions at various genomic functional regions. Compared with repetitive elements, functionally relevant genomic regions, such as promoters and CGI, demonstrate uniform DNA methylation patterns in all samples. In particular, lists of putative cell-subset specific methylated regions were identified in human and chimpanzee sperm. GO analysis indicated some genes associated with these putative cell-subset specific methylated regions are critical zing-finger transcriptional regulators, and some genes are related with functions of sperm.This analytical procedure established in this study will assist in the genome-wide analysis of variations in DNA methylation patterns. Furthermore, this study provided a unique view for DNA methylation variations within sperm cell populations and substantial evidence for functional relevance of methylation variations in sperm.
Keywords/Search Tags:Epigenetics, DNA methylation patterns, Sperm, Methylationheterogeneity, Methylation entropy
PDF Full Text Request
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