Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Nucleic Acids Research logoLink to Nucleic Acids Research
. 1978 Dec;5(12):4855–4863. doi: 10.1093/nar/5.12.4855

Methylation of DNA in early development: 5-methyl cytosine content of DNA in sea urchin sperm and embryos

James M Pollock Jr 1, Marcia Swihart 1, JHerbert Taylor 1
PMCID: PMC342793  PMID: 745996

Abstract

By separating formic acid hydrolysates with high pressure chromatography on an Aminex-10 column, we determined the ratio of 5-methyl cytosine to cytosine and other bases of DNA from sea urchin sperm and nuclei of embryos from early cleavage through pluteus stages. Contrary to several previous reports, we could not find any measurable changes in the methylation levels of embryonic nuclear DNAs at different stages of development. We also found no consistent differences between the methylation levels of sea urchin sperm and embryonic nuclei or the 5-methyl cytosine content of fish (Mugilcephalus) sperm and liver nuclei. While these measurements would not have detected subtle variations associated with differentiation, they would have indicated the gross changes previously reported for embryos or between sperm and somatic nuclei had those changes been present.

Full text

PDF
4855

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Adams R. L. Delayed methylation of DNA in developing sea urchin embryos. Nat New Biol. 1973 Jul 4;244(131):27–29. doi: 10.1038/newbio244027a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bird A. P., Southern E. M. Use of restriction enzymes to study eukaryotic DNA methylation: I. The methylation pattern in ribosomal DNA from Xenopus laevis. J Mol Biol. 1978 Jan 5;118(1):27–47. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(78)90242-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. COMB D. G. METYLATION OF NUCLEIC ACIDS DURING SEA URCHIN EMBRYO DEVELOPMENT. J Mol Biol. 1965 Apr;11:851–855. doi: 10.1016/s0022-2836(65)80043-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Culp L. A., Dore E., Brown G. M. Methylated bases in DNA of animal origin. Arch Biochem Biophys. 1970 Jan;136(1):73–79. doi: 10.1016/0003-9861(70)90328-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Cummings D. J., Tait A., Goddard J. M. Methylated bases in DNA from Paramecium aurelia. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1974 Nov 20;374(1):1–11. doi: 10.1016/0005-2787(74)90194-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Deutsch J., Razin A., Sedat J. Analysis of 5-methylcytosine in DNA. I. Mass spectrometry. Anal Biochem. 1976 May 7;72:586–592. doi: 10.1016/0003-2697(76)90570-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Gorovsky M. A., Hattman S., Pleger G. L. ( 6 N)methyl adenine in the nuclear DNA of a eucaryote, Tetrahymena pyriformis. J Cell Biol. 1973 Mar;56(3):697–701. doi: 10.1083/jcb.56.3.697. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Grippo P., Iaccarino M., Parisi E., Scarano E. Methylation of DNA in developing sea urchin embryos. J Mol Biol. 1968 Sep 14;36(2):195–208. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(68)90375-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Hattman S., Kenny C., Berger L., Pratt K. Comparative study of DNA methylation in three unicellular eucaryotes. J Bacteriol. 1978 Sep;135(3):1156–1157. doi: 10.1128/jb.135.3.1156-1157.1978. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Kappler J. W. The 5-methylcytosine content of DNA: tissue specificity. J Cell Physiol. 1971 Aug;78(1):33–36. doi: 10.1002/jcp.1040780106. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Kappler J. W. The kinetics of DNA methylation in cultures of a mouse adrenal cell line. J Cell Physiol. 1970 Feb;75(1):21–31. doi: 10.1002/jcp.1040750104. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Kemp J. D., Sutton D. W. A chemical and physical method for determining the complete base composition of plant DNA. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1976 Mar 4;425(2):148–156. doi: 10.1016/0005-2787(76)90020-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Nass M. M. Differential methylation of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA in cultured mouse, hamster and virus-transformed hamster cells. In vivo and in vitro methylation. J Mol Biol. 1973 Oct 15;80(1):155–175. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(73)90239-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Rae P. M. Hydroxymethyluracil in eukaryote DNA: a natural feature of the pyrrophyta (dinoflagellates). Science. 1976 Dec 3;194(4269):1062–1064. doi: 10.1126/science.988637. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Roeder R. G., Rutter W. J. Multiple ribonucleic acid polymerases and ribonucleic acid synthesis during sea urchin development. Biochemistry. 1970 Jun 9;9(12):2543–2553. doi: 10.1021/bi00814a023. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Scarano E., Iaccarino M., Grippo P., Winckelmans D. On methylation of DNA during development of the sea urchin embryo. J Mol Biol. 1965 Dec;14(2):603–607. doi: 10.1016/s0022-2836(65)80211-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Sneider T. W., Potter V. R. Methylation of mammalian DNA: studies on Novikoff hepatoma cells in tissue culture. J Mol Biol. 1969 Jun 14;42(2):271–284. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(69)90043-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Vanyushin B. F., Mazin A. L., Vasilyev V. K., Belozersky A. N. The content of 5-methylcytosine in animal DNA: the species and tissue specificity. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1973 Mar 28;299(3):397–403. doi: 10.1016/0005-2787(73)90264-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Vanyushin B. F., Tkacheva S. G., Belozersky A. N. Rare bases in animal DNA. Nature. 1970 Mar 7;225(5236):948–949. doi: 10.1038/225948a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Nucleic Acids Research are provided here courtesy of Oxford University Press

RESOURCES