Establishment of male-specific epigenetic information.
The setting of male-specific epigenetic information is a complex process, which involves a major global re-organisation, as well as localized changes of the nucleus structure during the pre-meiotic, meiotic and post-meiotic stages of the male germ cell differentiation. Although it has long been known that DNA methylation in targeted regions of the genome is associated with male-specific genomic imprinting, or that most core histones are hyperacetylated and then replaced by sperm-specific proteins during the post-meiotic condensation of the nucleus, many questions remain unanswered. How these changes interact, how they affect the epigenetic information and how the paternal epigenetic marks contribute to the future genome are indeed major issues remaining to be explored.
Rousseaux
Sophie
S
Unite INSERM U309, Institut Albert Bonniot, Domaine de la Merci, 38706 La Tronche Cedex, France. sophie.rousseaux@ujf-grenoble.fr
Caron
Cécile
C
Govin
Jérôme
J
Lestrat
Cécile
C
Faure
Anne-Karen
AK
Khochbin
Saadi
S
D000818:Animals; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002843:Chromatin / Q000502:physiology*; D004248:DNA (Cytosine-5-)-Methyltransferases / Q000378:metabolism; D019175:DNA Methylation; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D018392:Genomic Imprinting; D006657:Histones / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008322:Mammals; D008540:Meiosis; D013091:Spermatogenesis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000648:ultrastructure*
D002843:Chromatin; D006657:Histones; D004248:DNA (Cytosine-5-)-Methyltransferases