title: Circadian behavior is light-reprogrammed by plastic DNA methylation.
abstract: The timing of daily circadian behavior can be highly variable among different individuals, and twin studies have suggested that about half of this variability is environmentally controlled. Similar plasticity can be seen in mice exposed to an altered lighting environment, for example, 22-h instead of 24-h, which stably alters the genetically determined period of circadian behavior for months. The mechanisms mediating these environmental influences are unknown. We found that transient exposure of mice to such lighting stably altered global transcription in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus (the master clock tissue regulating circadian behavior in mammals). In parallel, genome-wide methylation profiling revealed global alterations in promoter DNA methylation in the SCN that correlated with these changes. Behavioral, transcriptional and DNA methylation changes were reversible after prolonged re-entrainment to 24-h d. Notably, infusion of a methyltransferase inhibitor to the SCN suppressed period changes. We conclude that the SCN utilizes DNA methylation as a mechanism to drive circadian clock plasticity.
authors: Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors: Abdelhalim
authors: A
authors: Azzi
authors: Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors: Robert
authors: R
authors: Dallmann
authors: Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors: Alison
authors: A
authors: Casserly
authors: Functional Genomics Centre, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors: Hubert
authors: H
authors: Rehrauer
authors: Functional Genomics Centre, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors: Andrea
authors: A
authors: Patrignani
authors: Laboratory of Chronobiology, Institute of Medical Immunology, Charité Universitätsmedizin, Berlin, Germany.
authors: Bert
authors: B
authors: Maier
authors: Laboratory of Chronobiology, Institute of Medical Immunology, Charité Universitätsmedizin, Berlin, Germany.
authors: Achim
authors: A
authors: Kramer
authors: Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors: Steven A
authors: SA
authors: Brown
mesh_terms: D056044:Actigraphy; D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000235:genetics*; D056925:Circadian Rhythm Signaling Peptides and Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D019175:DNA Methylation / Q000235:genetics*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000502:physiology*; D017440:Photoperiod; D013493:Suprachiasmatic Nucleus / Q000378:metabolism; D059467:Transcriptome / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D056925:Circadian Rhythm Signaling Peptides and Proteins