SummaryGenome-wide DNA methylation reprogramming occurs in mouse primordial germ cells (PGCs) and preimplantation embryos, but the precise dynamics and biological outcomes are largely unknown. We have carried out whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (BS-Seq) and RNA-Seq across key stages from E6.5 epiblast to E16.5 PGCs. Global loss of methylation takes place during PGC expansion and migration with evidence for passive demethylation, but sequences that carry long-term epigenetic memory (imprints, CpG islands on the X chromosome, germline-specific genes) only become demethylated upon entry of PGCs into the gonads. The transcriptional profile of PGCs is tightly controlled despite global hypomethylation, with transient expression of the pluripotency network, suggesting that reprogramming and pluripotency are inextricably linked. Our results provide a framework for the understanding of the epigenetic ground state of pluripotency in the germline.

Epigenetic reprogramming including demethylation of DNA occurs in mammalian primordial germ cells (PGCs) and in early embryos, and is important for the erasure of imprints and epimutations, and the return to pluripotency [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] . The extent of this reprogramming and its molecular mechanisms are poorly understood. We previously showed that the cytidine deaminases Aid and Apobec1 can deaminate 5-methylcytosine in vitro and in E coli, and in the mouse are expressed in tissues in which demethylation occurs 10 . Here we profiled DNA methylation throughout the genome by unbiased bisulfite Next Generation Sequencing 11-13 (BS-Seq) in wildtype and Aid deficient PGCs at E13.5. Wildtype PGCs revealed dramatic genome-wide erasure of methylation to a level below that of methylation deficient (Np95-/-) ES cells, with female PGCs being less methylated than male ones. By contrast, Aid deficient PGCs were up to three times more methylated than wildtype ones; this substantial difference occurred throughout the genome, with introns, intergenic regions and transposons being relatively more methylated than exons. Relative hypermethylation in Aid deficient PGCs was confirmed by analysis of individual loci in the genome. Our results reveal that erasure of DNA methylation in the germ line is a global process, hence limiting the potential for transgenerational epigenetic inheritance. Aid deficiency interferes with genome-wide erasure of DNA methylation patterns, suggesting that Aid has a critical function in epigenetic reprogramming and potentially in restricting the inheritance of epimutations in mammals.In plants active demethylation occurs widely (including in imprinted genes) and is carried out by 5meC glycosylases such as Demeter and Demeter like proteins [14][15][16] . This class of enzymes does not appear to exist in mammalian genomes, but instead we found that the cytosine Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to S.E. J. (jacobsen@ucla.edu) or W.R. (wolf.reik@bbsrc.ac.uk). * These authors contributed equally to this work Supplementary Information is linked to the online version of the paper at www.nature.com/nature.Author contributions C.P. and W.D. isolated tissue samples and PGCs, assessed the purity of the samples, and prepared DNA. C.P. undertook genetic crosses and determined weights of mouse pups. S.F. constructed bisulfite libraries and did Illumina Solexa sequencing, S.J.C., S.A., and M.P. carried out mapping, base-calling, and computational analyses. C.P., W.D., S.F., S.J.C., S.A., M.P., S.E.J and W.R. analysed data. C.P., W.D., S.F., S.E.J and W.R. designed experiments; S.E.J and W.R. designed and directed the study. C.P. and W.R. wrote the manuscript. deaminases Aid and Apobec1 can deaminate 5meC both in vitro and in E coli 10 , suggesting deamination of 5meC followed by T:G base excision repair by glycosylases such as Tdg or Mbd4 as an equivalent pathway for demethylation of DNA. Recently it has been shown that co-expression of Aid and Mbd4 in Zebrafish embryos ca...

The maintenance of specific gene expression patterns during cellular proliferation is crucial for the identity of every cell type and the development of tissues in multicellular organisms. Such a cellular memory function is conveyed by the complex interplay of the Polycomb and Trithorax groups of proteins (PcG/TrxG). These proteins exert their function at the level of chromatin by establishing and maintaining repressed (PcG) and active (TrxG) chromatin domains. Past studies indicated that a core PcG protein complex is potentially associated with cell type or even cell stage-specific sets of accessory proteins. In order to better understand the dynamic aspects underlying PcG composition and function we have established an inducible version of the biotinylation tagging approach to purify Polycomb and associated factors from Drosophila embryos. This system enabled fast and efficient isolation of Polycomb containing complexes under near physiological conditions, thereby preserving substoichiometric interactions. Novel interacting proteins were identified by highly sensitive mass spectrometric analysis. We found many TrxG related proteins, suggesting a previously unrecognized extent of molecular interaction of the two counteracting chromatin regulatory protein groups. Furthermore, our analysis revealed an association of PcG protein complexes with the cohesin complex and showed that Polycomb-dependent silencing of a transgenic reporter depends on cohesin function.biotagging | BirA | pairing-sensitive silencing | proteomics

The evolutionary success of retrotransposable elements is reflected by their abundance in mammalian genomes. To restrict their further advance, a number of defence mechanisms have been put in place by the host. These seem to be particularly effective in the germ line while somatic lineages might be more permissive to new insertions, as recent work by Kano and colleagues suggests.

Mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) reside in many human tissues and comprise a heterogeneous population of cells with self-renewal and multi-lineage differentiation potential, making them useful in regenerative medicine. It remains inconclusive whether MSCs isolated from different tissue sources exhibit variations in biological features. In this study, we derived MSCs from adipose tissue (AT-MSC) and compact bone (CB-MSC). We found that early passage of MSCs was readily expandable ex vivo, whereas the prolonged culture of MSCs showed alteration of cell morphology to fibroblastoid and reduced proliferation. CB-MSCs and AT-MSCs at passage 3 were CD29+, CD44+, CD105+, CD106+, and Sca-1+; however, passage 7 MSCs showed a reduction of MSC markers, indicating loss of stem cell population after prolonged culturing. Strikingly, CB-MSC was found more efficient at undergoing osteogenic differentiation, while AT-MSC was more efficient to differentiate into adipocytes. The biased differentiation pattern of MSCs from adipogenic or osteogenic tissue source was accompanied by preferential expression of the corresponding lineage marker genes. Interestingly, CB-MSCs treated with DNA demethylation agent 5-azacytidine showed enhanced osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation, whereas the treated AT-MSCs are less competent to differentiate. Our results suggest that the epigenetic state of MSCs is associated with the biased differentiation plasticity towards its tissue of origin, proposing a mechanism related to the retention of epigenetic memory. These findings facilitate the selection of optimal tissue sources of MSCs and the ex vivo expansion period for therapeutic applications.