Methylation characteristics and developmental potential of Guangxi Bama minipig (Sus scrofa domestica) cloned embryos from donor cells treated with trichostatin A and 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine

Zygote ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 178-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shu-Fang Ning ◽  
Qing-Yang Li ◽  
Ming-Ming Liang ◽  
Xiao-Gan Yang ◽  
Hui-Yan Xu ◽  
...  

SummaryReprogramming of DNA methylation in somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) embryos is incomplete, and aberrant DNA methylation patterns are related to the inefficiency of SCNT. To facilitate nuclear reprogramming, this study investigated the effect of treating Guangxi Bama minipig donor cells with trichostatin A (TSA), 5-aza-2′-deoxycytine (5-aza-dC), or combination of TSA and 5-aza-dC prior to nuclear transfer. Analyses showed that there were no major changes in cell-cycle status among all groups. We monitored the transcription of DNMT1, DNMT3a, HDAC1 and IGF2 genes in donor cells. Transcription levels of HDAC1 were decreased significantly after treatment with a combination of TSA and 5-aza-dC, along with a significantly increased level of IGF2 (P < 0.05). Although treatment of donor cells with either TSA or 5-aza-dC alone resulted in non-significant effects in blastocyst formation rate and DNA methylation levels, a combination of TSA and 5-aza-dC significantly improved the development rates of minipig SCNT embryos to blastocyst (25.6% vs. 16.0%, P < 0.05). This change was accompanied by decreased levels of DNA methylation in somatic cells and blastocyst (P < 0.05). Thus in combination with TSA, lower concentrations of 5-aza-dC may produce a potent demethylating activity, and lead to the significantly enhanced blastocyst development percentage of Bama minipig SCNT embryos.

2007 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 246
Author(s):  
B. Mohana Kumar ◽  
H. F. Jin ◽  
J. G. Kim ◽  
S. A. Ock ◽  
H. J. Song ◽  
...  

The inhibition of methyl groups in the DNA of donor cells has been hypothesized to improve the potential reprogramming by the enucleated ooplasm after nuclear transfer (NT). Previously, we reported that treatment of porcine fetal fibroblasts (PFF) with an inhibitor of methylation, 5-azacytidine (5-azaC) at 0.5 �m, results in the retention of desirable characteristics with a relative reduction in methylation, making cells more conducive for reprogramming (Mohana Kumar et al. 2006 Cell Tissue Res. 325, 445-454). To understand these observations further, the present study investigated the developmental competence and expression pattern of gene transcripts in porcine NT embryos from PFF (control) and 0.5 �m 5-azaC-treated PFF (PFF + 5-azaC) at 4-cell, 8-cell, morula, and blastocyst stages, and compared these with those of IVF and in vivo embryos. Cleavage rate was significantly (P &lt; 0.05) higher in IVF than in NT embryos from PFF and PFF + 5-azaC (86.7 � 5.2% vs. 65.8 � 5.3% and 69.3 � 4.4%, respectively). Similarly, significantly (P &lt; 0.05) higher blastocyst rates were observed in IVF embryos (27.2 � 2.1%). However, NT embryos from PFF + 5-azaC showed enhanced developmental potential with significantly (P &lt; 0.05) higher rates of blastocysts (21.3 � 2.2%) than NT embryos from PFF (14.8 � 1.9%). NT embryos from PFF + 5-azaC (33.8 � 4.1) had significantly (P &lt; 0.05) higher total cell numbers than from PFF (24.6 � 3.5), but did not differ in the proportion of apoptotic cells (6.9 � 1.8% and 7.2 � 2.1%, respectively). However, the high total cell number and lower incidence of apoptosis were observed in IVF and in vivo embryos (45.3 � 3.8, 2.7 � 0.8%, and 53.9 � 3.5, 1.2 � 0.9%, respectively). Alterations in the expression pattern of genes implicated in transcription and pluripotency (Oct4 and Stat3), DNA methylation (DNA methyltransferases: Dnmt1, Dnmt2, Dnmt3a, and Dnmt3b), histone acetylation (histone acetyltransferase 1-HAT1), and histone deacetylation (histone deacetylases-Hdac1, Hdac2, and Hdac3) were observed in NT embryos from PFF and PFF + 5-azaC compared with that in IVF and in vivo counterparts. However, the expression of genes in PFF + 5-azaC-NT embryos closely followed those of in vivo-derived embryos compared with PFF-NT embryos, and, interestingly, there was lower variability in the expression of genes related to DNA methylation. Our findings demonstrate that remodeling of the epigenetic status by partial reduction of somatic DNA methylation from donor cells is beneficial in improving the developmental competency of porcine NT embryos. Further, hypomethylated donors may be more efficiently reprogrammed to re-activate the expression of early embryonic genes. This work was supported by Grant No. R05-2004-000-10702-0 from KOSEF, Republic of Korea.


2006 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 130 ◽  
Author(s):  
B.-G. Jeon ◽  
S. D. Perrault ◽  
G.-J. Rho ◽  
D. H. Betts ◽  
W. A. King

Animal cloning by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) has been successfully applied to several species although with low efficiency and often associated with severe abnormalities. These poor outcomes are thought to be a consequence of aberrant DNA methylation patterns that result from incomplete epigenetic reprogramming of the transplanted nucleus into recipient oocytes. Telomerase, an enzyme not expressed in most somatic cells, should be expressed in cloned embryos. Therefore its activity has been used as an index of reprogramming in SCNT embryos. The objective of this study was to investigate the DNA methylation status of donor fibroblasts treated with a non-cytotoxic transmethylation inhibitor, S-adenosyl homocysteine (SAH), and to assess the relative telomerase activity (RTA) and developmental potential of SCNT embryos derived from such cells. Adult ear skin fibroblasts were cultured in DMEM supplemented with 0, 0.5, 1.0, or 2.0 mM SAH for 144 h by daily media change prior to nuclear transfer. The SAH-treated fibroblasts were immunostained with a fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) conjugated 5-methylcytosine antibody and the relative fluorescence intensity (RFI) was analyzed using a fluorescence microscope equipped with an Openlab" program (Improvision, Coventry, UK). RTA was measured in Day 8 SCNT blastocysts using the real-time quantitative telomeric repeat amplification protocol (RQ-TRAP). Fibroblasts treated with 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 mM SAH showed lower levels of DNA methylation compared to nontreated controls, and the values did not differ among the treatment groups. Cleavage rates did not differ between the SCNT embryos derived from 0.5 mM SAH-treated cells and nontreated control cells (92.3% vs. 91.3%, respectively). However, the rates of blastocyst development and hatching were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in SCNT embryos derived from 0.5 mM SAH treated donor cells compared to controls (60.0 and 40.0% vs. 34.3 and 26.4%, respectively). Moreover, RTA of the 0.5 mM SAH SCNT embryos was significantly (P < 0.05) increased (1.5-fold) in relation to controls. S-adenosyl homocysteine treatment induces global DNA demethylation in donor fibroblasts and enhances the blastocyst frequencies for bovine SCNT embryos that also exhibit greater telomerase activity levels. These results suggest that use of hypomethylated donor somatic cells increases the developmental potential for SCNT embryos by enhancing the nuclear reprogramming efficiency. This work was funded by NSERC, OMAF, OCAG, and CRC.


2006 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 148
Author(s):  
J. F. Yang ◽  
S. H. Yang ◽  
Y. Y. Niu ◽  
Q. Zhou ◽  
W. Z. Ji

Up to now, no primate animals have been successfully cloned with somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) and little is known about molecular events occurring in SCNT embryos. DNA methylation reprogramming is likely to have a crucial role in establishing nuclear totipotency in normal development and in cloned animals. Epigenetic characteristics of donor cell nuclei and their epigenetic reprogramming in oocyte cytoplasm have been supposed as major factors influencing the development of SCNT embryos. In Experiment 1, on donor cells used in a previous SCNT at our laboratory, global DNA methylation and histone 3 lysine 9 acetylation (H3K9ac) of three cell lines (S11, S1-04, and S1-03) derived from ear skin were examined after serum starvation by immunofluorescence with monoclonal antibody to 5-methyl cytosine (Oncogene, Science, Inc., Cambridge, MA, USA) and anti-acetyl-Histone H3 (Lys 9) (Upstate Jingmei Biotech, Ltd., Shenzhen, China). In the results, two cells lines, S11 and S1-04, supporting higher blastocyst development (about 20%) than that (7.8%) of S1-03, showed a higher level of H3K9ac than the S1-03 cell line. Global DNA methylation levels in the three cell lines were decreased after serum starvation, but no obvious correlation between the level and SCNT embryo developmental potential was found among the three cell lines. In Experiment 2, on SCNT and IVF embryos, global DNA methylation reprogramming during pre-implantation development was investigated with immunofluorescence and laser scanning microscopy techniques. In IVF embryos, active demethylation of paternal genome occurred soon after fertilization; subsequently, passive demethylation resulted in remarkably reduced global methylation level at the 8-cell stage and the morula stage. Thereafter, genomewide remethylation started at the late morula stage and an asymmetric methylation pattern was formed in blastocysts, with higher methylated trophectoderm than inner cell mass (ICM). Compared with IVF embryos, most SCNT 2-cell embryos and ICM in blastocysts showed higher methylation levels, and the asymmetric methylation pattern was not as evident as that in IVF blastocysts. Some SCNT 8-cell embryos showed higher methylation, but others were slightly stained, even lower than IVF embryos. In conclusion, the higher global H3K9 acetylation level of donor cells may benefit chromatin remolding and development of SCNT embryos. Abnormal methylation reprogramming in most SCNT embryos, especially in ICM of blastocysts, may be one main obstacle for primate cloning, although relatively high blastocyst development rate was obtained. DNA methylation reprogramming in rhesus monkey pre-implantation embryos, on the whole, was as conservative as that reported in other mammals.


2009 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 113 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Couldrey ◽  
M. P. Green ◽  
D. N. Wells ◽  
R. S. F. Lee

Cloning of domestic animals by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) has permitted the rescue of valuable genetics and has the potential to allow rapid dissemination of desirable traits in production animals through the use of cloned sires. Whilst cloned animals may show developmental deviations and aberrant DNA methylation suggestive of incomplete nuclear reprogramming, it is widely accepted that their offspring are normal, as any aberrant epigenetic marks are believed to be corrected on passage of the genome through the germline. We assessed the extent of reprogramming by comparing DNA methylation patterns in sperm of SCNT bulls (n = 4) with sperm from bulls generated by AI (n = 5) and with the nuclear donor somatic cells (adult skin fibroblasts). The genomic regions examined were 3 repetitive sequences (satellites 1, 2, and alpha) and CpG islands in 5 genes [HAND1, LIT1, MASH2, IGF2, Dickkopf-1(DKK-1)]. Semen was collected from 16-month-old bulls and assessed for volume, sperm number, morphology, and motility. DNA was extracted from washed sperm and somatic donor cells, bisulfite-treated and processed for quantification of CpG methylation using the Sequenom MassArray system. Methylation levels at individual CpG sites/groups of CpGs were compared between sample groups using the t-test with pooled variances. No apparent difference was detected in semen characteristics between SCNT and AI bulls. Sperm DNA methylation levels were very low in single copy genes with the exception of the CpG island in IGF2, which has previously been shown to be completely methylated in sperm. At all genomic regions examined, each CpG site or CpG groups were methylated to different levels, and each region had a distinctive profile, which was almost invariant between individual sperm samples from either the SCNT or AI bulls. In all sites examined, there were no significant differences in methylation profiles between sperm from SCNT and AI bulls. In contrast, DNA methylation profiles were significantly different between SCNT bull sperm and the donor cells. The exception was the CpG island in MASH2, which was essentially unmethylated in both. For the 3 satellite sequences along with LIT1, HAND1, and to a lesser extent, the DKK-1 region, DNA was significantly less methylated in sperm than in the donor cells. Only IGF2 was significantly more methylated in SCNT and AI sperm than in the donor cells at 10/25 CpG sites (P < 0.02). The results indicate that gametes from SCNT bulls had different epigenotypes from the donor somatic cells. This is the first molecular evidence that donor cell genomes have been reprogrammed in these SCNT bulls and that after going through the germline had acquired DNA methylation profiles that were similar to AI-derived bulls. It also suggests that any epigenetic aberrations that SCNT bulls may harbor are unlikely to be passed on to their offspring through their gametes. Supported by FRST contract C10X0311.


Zygote ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 211-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeong Tae Do ◽  
Kwon Ho Hong ◽  
Bo Yon Lee ◽  
Seung Bo Kim ◽  
Nam-Hyung Kim ◽  
...  

In this study we examined the developmental potential of reconstructed embryos and the fate of donor mitochondria during preimplantation development after nuclear transfer in cattle. Isolated cumulus cells were used as donor cells in nuclear transfer. Cumulus cells labelled with MitoTracker Green FM fluorochrome were injected into enucleated bovine MII oocytes and cultured in vitro. MitoTracker labelling on donor cells did not have a detrimental effect on blastocyst formation following nuclear transfer. Cleavage rate was about 69% (56/81) and blastocyst formation rate was 6.2% (5/81) at 7 days after nuclear transfer. The labelled mitochondria dispersed to the cytoplasm and became distributed between blastomeres and could be identified up to the 8- to 15-cell stage. Small patches of mitochondria were detected in some 8- to 15-cell stage embryos (5/20). However, donor mitochondria were not detected in embryos at the 16-cell stage and subsequent developmental stages. In the control group, mitochondria could be identified in arrested 1-cell embryos up to 7 days after nuclear transfer. These results suggest that disappearance of the labelled donor mitochondria in nuclear transfer bovine embryos is not due to fading of the fluorochrome marker, but is rather an as yet undefined cytoplasmic event.


2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Cao ◽  
Jun Li ◽  
Wenlong Su ◽  
Junjie Li ◽  
Zhigang Wang ◽  
...  

Aberrant DNA methylation reduces the developmental competence of mammalian somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) embryos. Thus, hypomethylation-associated drugs are beneficial for improving reprogramming efficiency. Therefore, in the present study we investigated the effect of zebularine, a relatively novel DNA methyltransferase inhibitor, on the developmental potential of ovine SCNT embryos. First, reduced overall DNA methylation patterns and gene-specific DNA methylation levels at the promoter regions of pluripotency genes (octamer-binding transcription factor 4 (Oct4), SRY (sex determining region Y)-box 2 (Sox2) and Nanog) were found in zebularine-treated cumulus cells. In addition, the DNA methylation levels in SCNT embryos derived from zebularine-treated cumulus cells were significantly reduced at the 2-, 4-, 8-cell, and blastocyst stages compared with their corresponding controls (P&lt;0.05). The blastocyst rate was significantly improved in SCNT embryos reconstructed by the cumulus donor cells treated with 5nM zebularine for 12h compared with the control group (25.4±1.6 vs 11.8±1.7%, P&lt;0.05). Moreover, the abundance of Oct4 and Sox2 mRNA was significantly increased during the preimplantation stages after zebularine treatment (P&lt;0.05). In conclusion, the results indicate that, in an ovine model, zebularine decreases overall DNA methylation levels in donor cumulus cells and reconstructed embryos, downregulates the DNA methylation profile in the promoter region of pluripotency genes in donor cells and ultimately elevates the expression of pluripotency genes in the reconstructed embryos, which can lead to improved development of SCNT embryos.


Reproduction ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 133 (1) ◽  
pp. 219-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feikun Yang ◽  
Ru Hao ◽  
Barbara Kessler ◽  
Gottfried Brem ◽  
Eckhard Wolf ◽  
...  

The epigenetic status of a donor nucleus has an important effect on the developmental potential of embryos produced by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). In this study, we transferred cultured rabbit cumulus cells (RCC) and fetal fibroblasts (RFF) from genetically marked rabbits (Alicia/Basilea) into metaphase II oocytes and analyzed the levels of histone H3-lysine 9-lysine 14 acetylation (acH3K9/14) in donor cells and cloned embryos. We also assessed the correlation between the histone acetylation status of donor cells and cloned embryos and their developmental potential. To test whether alteration of the histone acetylation status affects development of cloned embryos, we treated donor cells with sodium butyrate (NaBu), a histone deacetylase inhibitor. Further, we tried to improve cloning efficiency by chimeric complementation of cloned embryos with blastomeres fromin vivofertilized or parthenogenetic embryos. The levels of acH3K9/14 were higher in RCCs than in RFFs (P<0.05). Although the type of donor cells did not affect development to blastocyst, after transfer into recipients, RCC cloned embryos induced a higher initial pregnancy rate as compared to RFF cloned embryos (40 vs 20%). However, almost all pregnancies with either type of cloned embryos were lost by the middle of gestation and only one fully developed, live RCC-derived rabbit was obtained. Treatment of RFFs with NaBu significantly increased the level of acH3K9/14 and the proportion of nuclear transfer embryos developing to blastocyst (49 vs 33% with non-treated RFF,P<0.05). The distribution of acH3K9/14 in either group of cloned embryos did not resemble that inin vivofertilized embryos suggesting that reprogramming of this epigenetic mark is aberrant in cloned rabbit embryos and cannot be corrected by treatment of donor cells with NaBu. Aggregation of embryos cloned from NaBu-treated RFFs with blastomeres fromin vivoderived embryos improved development to blastocyst, but no cloned offspring were obtained. Two live cloned rabbits were produced from this donor cell type only after aggregation of cloned embryos with a parthenogenetic blastomere. Our study demonstrates that the levels of histone acetylation in donor cells and cloned embryos correlate with their developmental potential and may be a useful epigenetic mark to predict efficiency of SCNT in rabbits.


2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 190-202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonidas Chouliaras ◽  
Roy Lardenoije ◽  
Gunter Kenis ◽  
Diego Mastroeni ◽  
Patrick R. Hof ◽  
...  

Abstract Brain aging has been associated with aberrant DNA methylation patterns, and changes in the levels of DNA methylation and associated markers have been observed in the brains of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients. DNA hydroxymethylation, however, has been sparsely investigated in aging and AD. We have previously reported robust decreases in 5-methylcytosine (5-mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5-hmC) in the hippocampus of AD patients compared to non-demented controls. In the present study, we investigated 3- and 9-month-old APPswe/PS1ΔE9 transgenic and wild-type mice for possible age-related alterations in 5-mC and 5-hmC levels in three hippocampal sub-regions using quantitative immunohistochemistry. While age-related increases in levels of both 5-mC and 5-hmC were found in wild-type mice, APPswe/PS1ΔE9 mice showed decreased levels of 5-mC at 9 months of age and no age-related changes in 5-hmC throughout the hippocampus. Altogether, these findings suggest that aberrant amyloid processing impact on the balance between DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation in the hippocampus during aging in mice.


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