Differential methylation status of IGF2‐H19 locus does not affect the fertility of crossbred bulls but some of the CTCF binding sites could be potentially important. Issue 4 (18th February 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jena, Subas C.; Kumar, Sandeep; Rajput, Sandeep; Roy, Bhaskar; Verma, Arpana; Kumaresan, Arumugam; Mohanty, Tushar K.; De, Sachinandan; Kumar, Rakesh; Datta, Tirtha K.
• Is Part Of: Molecular reproduction and development. Volume 81:Issue 4(2014:Apr.)
• Page Start: 350
• Page End: 362
• Publication Date: 2014-02-18
• Subjects: Reproduction -- Periodicals; Molecular biology -- Periodicals; Molecular genetics -- Periodicals; Embryology -- Periodicals; 571.8
• DOI: 10.1002/mrd.22303
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1040-452X

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main" xml:lang="en"> <title>SUMMARY</title> <sec id="mrd22303-sec-0001" sec-type="section"> <p>Associations between abnormal methylation of spermatozoan DNA with male infertility have been sought in recent years to identify a molecular explanation of differential spermatozoan function. The present work was undertaken to investigate the methylation profile of differentially methylated regions (DMRs) in the <italic>IGF2‐H19</italic> locus of <italic>Bos taurus</italic> X <italic>Bos indicus</italic> crossbred bull spermatozoa. Bulls having more than at least 100 insemination records over a period of 12 years were classified into two groups of five bulls each belonging to low‐ and high‐fertility groups. The <italic>IGF2</italic> and <italic>H19</italic> DMR sequences in <italic>B. indicus</italic> cattle were observed to be in absolute homology with <italic>B. taurus</italic> cattle. The DNA of crossbred bull spermatozoa was isolated, bisulfite treated, and amplified for specific DMR regions using methylation‐change‐specific primers. The overall degree of methylation at <italic>IGF2‐H19</italic> DMRs was not found to be significantly different among two groups of bulls. The sixth CTCF binding site (CCCTC) identified in <italic>H19</italic> DMR, however, had a significant methylation difference between the high‐ and low‐fertility bulls. It was concluded that alteration of the methylation levels at <italic>IGF2‐H19</italic> DMRs might not be responsible for the fertility difference of crossbred bulls, although the role played by the specific CTCF binding sites at this locus, which could influence <italic>IGF2</italic> expression during spermatogenesis and early embryonic development, deserves further attention. <italic>Mol. Reprod. Dev</italic>. 81: 350–362, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.</p> </sec> </abstract>