Direct enzymatic sequencing of 5-methylcytosine at single-base resolution [4]
5-methylcytosine (5mC) is the most important DNA modification in mammalian genomes as a lineage-defining mark dynamically altered in development and disease. The ideal method for 5mC localization would be both non-destructive of DNA and direct, without requiring inference based on detection of unmodified cytosines. Here, we present Direct Methylation Sequencing (DM-Seq), a bisulfite-free method for profiling 5mC at single-base resolution, using nanogram quantities of input DNA. DM-Seq employs two key DNA modifying enzymes: a neomorphic DNA methyltransferase engineered to generate the unnatural base 5-carboxymethylcytosine, and a DNA deaminase capable of precise discrimination between cytosine modification states. Coupling these activities requires a novel adapter strategy employing 5-propynylcytosine, ultimately resulting in the accurate and direct detection of only 5mC via a C-to-T transition in sequencing. In performing comparisons to DM-Seq, we uncover a systematic bias in 5mC  detection seen with the hybrid enzymatic-chemical TAPS sequencing approach. Furthermore, by applying DM-Seq to a human glioblastoma tumor, we demonstrate that DM-Seq, unlike bisulfite-sequencing, detects 5mC at prognostically-important CpGs, without confounding by 5-hydroxymethylcytosine. DM-Seq thus leverages unnatural DNA modifications to create the first method for direct 5mC profiling entirely using enzymes rather than chemical reagents. Overall design: DNA (no deamination), BS, DM, TAPS, or TAPS-beta sequencing experiments