Methylation Patterns of Immunoglobulin Genes in Lymphoid Cells: Correlation of Expression and Differentiation with Undermethylation

Different states of eukaryotic gene expression are often correlated with different levels of methylation of DNA sequences containing structural genes and their flanking regions. To assess the potential role of DNA methylation in the expression of immunoglobulin genes, which require complex rearrange...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 1983-11, Vol.80 (21), p.6642-6646
Main Authors: Storb, Ursula, Arp, Benjamin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
B lymphocytes
Cell Line
Cell lines
Chromatin - physiology
DNA
DNA Restriction Enzymes
Gene Expression Regulation
Genes
Germ cells
Hybridomas
Immunoglobulins - genetics
L cells
Liver
Lymphocytes
Lymphocytes - physiology
Methylation
Mice
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Summary:Different states of eukaryotic gene expression are often correlated with different levels of methylation of DNA sequences containing structural genes and their flanking regions. To assess the potential role of DNA methylation in the expression of immunoglobulin genes, which require complex rearrangements prior to expression, methylation patterns were examined in cell lines representing different stages of lymphocyte maturation. Methylation of the second cytosine in the sequence 5′C-C-G-G 3′was determined by using Hpa II/Msp I endonuclease digestion. Four CHgenes (Cμ, Cδ, Cγ2b, and Cα), Cκ, Vκ, Cλ, and Vλgenes were analyzed. The results lead to the following conclusions: (i) transcribed immunoglobulin genes are undermethylated; (ii) the C gene allelic to an expressed C gene is always also undermethylated; and (iii) all immunoglobulin loci tend to become increasingly undermethylated as B cells mature.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.80.21.6642