title: Methylation changes of H19 gene in sperms of X-irradiated mouse and maintenance in offspring.
abstract: The nature of imprinting is just differential methylation of imprinted genes. Unlike the non-imprinted genes, the methylation pattern of imprinted genes established during the period of gametogenesis remains unchangeable after fertilization and during embryo development. It implies that gametogenesis is the key stage for methylation pattern of imprinted genes. The imprinting interfered by exogenous factors during this stage could be inherited to offspring and cause genetic effect. Now many studies have proved that ionizing irradiation could disturb DNA methylation. Here we choose BALB/c mice as a research model and X-ray as interfering source to further clarify it. We discovered that the whole-body irradiation of X-ray to male BALB/c mice could influence the methylation pattern of H19 gene in sperms, which resulted in some cytosines of partial CpG islands in the imprinting control region could not transform to methylated cytosines. Furthermore, by copulating the interfered male mice with normal female, we analyzed the promoter methylation pattern of H19 in offspring fetal liver and compared the same to the pattern of male parent in sperms. We found that the majority of methylation changes in offspring liver were related to the ones in their parent sperms. Our data proved that the changes of the H19 gene methylation pattern interfered by X-ray irradiation could be transmitted and maintained in the first-generation offspring.
authors.affiliation: Division of Radiation Medicine, University of Suzhou, Suzhou 215123, PR China.
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Xinghua
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Jindong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yachao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Jingyong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhao
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019175:DNA Methylation / Q000528:radiation effects*; D005260:Female; D014644:Genetic Variation / Q000235:genetics; D018392:Genomic Imprinting / Q000235:genetics* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D062085:RNA, Long Noncoding; D022661:RNA, Untranslated / Q000235:genetics*; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000528:radiation effects*; D014916:Whole-Body Irradiation; D014965:X-Rays
chemical_list: C094335:H19 long non-coding RNA; D062085:RNA, Long Noncoding; D022661:RNA, Untranslated