Oxidative Bisulfite Research Articles

Variations in 5-methylcytosine and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine among human brain, blood, and saliva using oxBS and the Infinium MethylationEPIC array.

Investigating 5-methylcytosine (5mC) has led to many hypotheses regarding molecular mechanism underlying human diseases and disorders. Many of these studies, however, utilize bisulfite conversion alone, which cannot distinguish 5mC from its recently discovered oxidative product, 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC). Furthermore, previous array-based technologies do not have the necessary probes to adequately investigate both modifications simultaneously. In this manuscript, we used technical replicates of DNA from human brain, human blood, and human saliva, in combination with oxidative bisulfite conversion and Illumina’s Infinium MethylationEPIC array, to analyze 5mC and 5hmC at more than 650 000 and 450 000 relevant loci, respectively, in the human genome. We show the presence of loci with detectable 5mC and 5hmC to be equally distributed across chromosomes and genomic features, while also being present in genomic regions with transcriptional regulatory properties. We also describe 2528 5hmC sites common across tissue types that show a strong association with immune-related functions. Lastly, in human brain, we show that 5hmC accounts for one-third of the total signal from bisulfite-converted data. As such, not only do our results confirm the efficacy and sensitivity of pairing oxidative bisulfite conversion and the EPIC array to detect 5mC and 5hmC in all three tissue types, but they also highlight the importance of dissociating 5hmC from 5mC in future studies related to cytosine modifications.

Variation in 5-hydroxymethylcytosine across human cortex and cerebellum.

BackgroundThe most widely utilized approaches for quantifying DNA methylation involve the treatment of genomic DNA with sodium bisulfite; however, this method cannot distinguish between 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC). Previous studies have shown that 5hmC is enriched in the brain, although little is known about its genomic distribution and how it differs between anatomical regions and individuals. In this study, we combine oxidative bisulfite (oxBS) treatment with the Illumina Infinium 450K BeadArray to quantify genome-wide patterns of 5hmC in two distinct anatomical regions of the brain from multiple individuals.ResultsWe identify 37,145 and 65,563 sites passing our threshold for detectable 5hmC in the prefrontal cortex and cerebellum respectively, with 23,445 loci common across both brain regions. Distinct patterns of 5hmC are identified in each brain region, with notable differences in the genomic location of the most hydroxymethylated loci between these brain regions. Tissue-specific patterns of 5hmC are subsequently confirmed in an independent set of prefrontal cortex and cerebellum samples.ConclusionsThis study represents the first systematic analysis of 5hmC in the human brain, identifying tissue-specific hydroxymethylated positions and genomic regions characterized by inter-individual variation in DNA hydroxymethylation. This study demonstrates the utility of combining oxBS-treatment with the Illumina 450k methylation array to systematically quantify 5hmC across the genome and the potential utility of this approach for epigenomic studies of brain disorders.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13059-016-0871-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Single-base resolution analysis of DNA epigenome via high-throughput sequencing.

Epigenetic changes caused by DNA methylation and histone modifications play important roles in the regulation of various cellular processes and development. Recent discoveries of 5-methylcytosine (5mC) oxidation derivatives including 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC), 5-formylcytsine (5fC) and 5-carboxycytosine (5caC) in mammalian genome further expand our understanding of the epigenetic regulation. Analysis of DNA modification patterns relies increasingly on sequencing-based profiling methods. A number of different approaches have been established to map the DNA epigenomes with single-base resolution, as represented by the bisulfite-based methods, such as classical bisulfite sequencing (BS-seq), TAB-seq (TET-assisted bisulfite sequencing), oxBS-seq (oxidative bisulfite sequencing) and etc. These methods have been used to generate base-resolution maps of 5mC and its oxidation derivatives in genomic samples. The focus of this review will be to discuss the chemical methodologies that have been developed to detect the cytosine derivatives in the genomic DNA.

Functional and Molecular Consequences of the Dnmt3aR882H Mutation in Acute Myeloid Leukaemia

The de novo DNA Methyltransferase 3A (DNMT3A) gene is one of the most commonly mutated gene in acute myeloid leukaemia with a normal karyotype (AML-NK). Approximately two thirds of mutations are heterozygous and affect codon R882, located within the methytransferase domain. Also, we and others have shown that these mutations occur in a significant proportion of haematologically normal people and behave as leukaemia-initiating changes.DNMT3A mediates the transfer of a methyl group from s-adenosylmethionine (SAM) to the 5' carbon of cytosine residues at CpG dinucleotides. The DNMT3A protein domains bind to unmethylated H3K4, a repressive histone mark, as well as the H3K36Me3 mark associated with active transcription. DNA methylation is linked to histone modifications and DNMT3A binds to class I and II histone deacetylases (HDAC) and histone methyltransferases (HMT), such as SETDB1 and G9a, as well components of Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2).DNMT3AR882H has been reported to exert a dominant-negative effect on wild type (WT) DNMT3A, with a significant reduction of its enzymatic activity. In AML samples, the R882 mutation correlates with global hypomethylation, particularly at CpG islands, shores and promoters, although some promoter hypermethylation has also been reported. However, the molecular mechanism, through which DNMT3AR882H alters methylation to drives leukaemia, remains unknown.In order to understand the molecular and functional consequences of the DNMT3AR882H mutation in leukaemogenesis we developed a mouse model (Dnmt3afloxR882H/+), whereby targeting of the Dnmt3a allele does not inactivate the native locus. This allows conditional expression of the mutant protein within haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells that have developed in the presence of normal levels of Dnmt3a. Dnmt3afloxR882H/+ mice were crossed with mice carrying an interferon-inducible Cre recombinase allele (Mx1-Cre). Upon Cre induction with pIpC the endogenous Dnmt3a exon 23 (last exon), was efficiently replaced by the human exon 23 carrying the R882H mutation. This was confirmed at both the DNA and the RNA level. In order to investigate the molecular effects of Dnmt3aR882H, we analysed pre-leukaemic haematopoietic cells (in mice 5-6 weeks post Cre-induction). We observed that Dnmt3aR882H/+ mutant bone marrow (BM) cells had markedly enhanced self-renewal potential as manifested by increased serial replating in cytokine supplemented methylcellulose media in comparison to WT mice. We next examined the relative haemopoietic reconstitution efficiency of Dnmt3aR882H/+ BM cells in a competitive setting. Dnmt3aR882H/+ BM (CD45.2) cells were mixed with WT competitor BM (CD45.1) cells at a ratio of 1:2 and transplanted into lethally irradiated recipient mice (CD45.1/45.2). The analysis of blood chimerism in recipients indicated an increased contribution from Dnmt3aR882H/+ in comparison to WT cells, indicating the enhanced ability of Dnmt3aR882H/+ BM cells to engraft and reconstitute recipient mice. Currently, we are addressing the role of Dnmt3aR882H in the spontaneous leukaemia development alone as well as in rational combinations with other mutations present in human AML.Additionally, to elucidate the molecular mechanism underlying the striking haematopoietic phenotypes ofDnmt3aR882H/+ we have performed analyses of DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation patterns in the haematopoietic progenitor compartment (lineage negative cell population) of Dnmt3aR882H/+ and WT mice, using reduced representation oxidative bisulfite sequencing (RRoxBS) in the pre-leukaemic setting. Moreover, due to cross-talk between Dnmt3a mediated DNA methylation and other chromatin states, we have analysed Dnmt3aR882H-associated changes in histone tail modifications, using ChIP-Seq. As the DNA and histone modifications associated with Dnmt3aR882H are likely to lead to alter global gene expression, we also performed RNAseq analysis in Dnmt3aR882H/+ and WT mice.Currently, we are conducting an integrated analysis, coupling DNA and histone modifications to aberrant gene expression and Dnmt3aR882H-dependent phenotypes. We predict that this work will provide a detailed understanding of the molecular and cellular effects of DNMT3A-R882H and in so doing reveal rational therapeutic approaches for patients with this common and aggressive subtype of AML. DisclosuresNo relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

A Strategy for Accurate Quantification of 5-Methylcytosine and 5-Hydroxymethylcytosine at CpG Sites Within Gene Promoter.

5-Methylcytosine (5mC) can be converted to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) in mammalian DNA by the ten-eleven translocation (TET) enzymes. Traditional bisulfite-based DNA methylation analysis techniques have been widely used in the detection of 5mC. However, they can not discriminate 5hmC from 5mC, leading to overestimate 5mC levels. We here introduce a strategy, combination of selective oxidation and bisulfite pyrosequencing (BS-Pyroseq), for quantification of both 5mC and 5hmC at CpG sites within the promoters of CDH1, DAPK, RARβ and RUNX3 genes in a panel of cell lines and clinical samples. As expected, oxidative bisulfite pyrosequencing (oxBS-Pyroseq) assay decreased overall or site-specific methylation levels of three of these genes in most cell lines as compared with BS-Pyroseq assay. Similarly, decreased overall or site-specific methylation levels of DAPK, RARβ and RUNX3 genes in laryngeal, gastric and thyroid cancer and their matched normal tissues, respectively, were also found by a comparison between these two techniques, particularly in cancerous tissues. In addition, by using this combined strategy and hydroxymethylcytosine DNA immunoprecipitation (hMeDIP) assay, we demonstrated that TET1 up-regulated DAPK expression through promoter demethylation. Collectively, this strategy is easy to establish and accurately discriminates and quantifies 5mC and 5hmC at CpG sites within selected gene promoters.

Characterization of Hydroxymethylation Patterns in the Promoter of β-globin Clusters in Murine Fetal Livers.

DNA methylation of 5-methylcytosine (5mC) is a key epigenetic regulator in mammals; the dynamic balance between methylation and demethylation affects the transcriptional activity of β-globin. However, the dynamic cytosine methylation of β-globin in vivo during the different stages of embryogenesis and in developing liver has not been fully established. 5-Hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) is a newly discovered epigenetic modification that is presumably generated by oxidation of 5mC by the ten-eleven translocation (TET) family and it has not been fully identified in β-globin clusters. Here, we determined the 5hmC modifications in the promoter of murine β-globin from fetal livers during normal embryonic development with the methods of bisulfite (BS) and oxidative bisulfite (oxBS)-based pyrosequencing techniques, with the combination of methylated DNA immunoprecipitation (MeDIP) and chromatin immunoprecipitation-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (ChIP-qPCR). The results characterized the 5hmC modification at the CpG sites of -426, -388, and -151 of ɛ(y) promoters and -50 and -487 CpG of β(h1) from transcriptional start sites from E15.5 and E17.5 livers, while 5hmC modification was not observed in the adult β-globin promoters. These observations were validated by the induction of TET transcription after being treated with a potent demethylating agent 5-azacytidine, and TET-mediated hydroxymethylation of ɛ(y) and β(h1) from E13.5 livers was also confirmed in our study. These results suggested the 5hmC modification in promoters of ɛ(y) and β(h1) and indicated that the 5hmC modification is essential for the β-globin switching before the embryonic globin reactivation.

Accurate measurement of 5-methylcytosine and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine in human cerebellum DNA by oxidative bisulfite on an array (OxBS-array).

The Infinium 450K Methylation array is an established tool for measuring methylation. However, the bisulfite (BS) reaction commonly used with the 450K array cannot distinguish between 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC). The oxidative-bisulfite assay disambiguates 5mC and 5hmC. We describe the use of oxBS in conjunction with the 450K array (oxBS-array) to analyse 5hmC/5mC in cerebellum DNA. The “methylation” level derived by the BS reaction is the combined level of 5mC and 5hmC at a given base, while the oxBS reaction gives the level of 5mC alone. The level of 5hmC is derived by subtracting the oxBS level from the BS level. Here we present an analysis method that distinguishes genuine positive levels of 5hmC at levels as low as 3%. We performed four replicates of the same sample of cerebellum and found a high level of reproducibility (average r for BS = 98.3, and average r for oxBS = 96.8). In total, 114,734 probes showed a significant positive measurement for 5hmC. The range at which we were able to distinguish 5hmC occupancy was between 3% and 42%. In order to investigate the effects of multiple replicates on 5hmC detection we also simulated fewer replicates and found that decreasing the number of replicates to two reduced the number of positive probes identified by > 50%. We validated our results using qPCR in conjunction with glucosylation of 5hmC sites followed by MspI digestion and we found good concordance with the array estimates (r = 0.94). This experiment provides a map of 5hmC in the cerebellum and a robust dataset for use as a standard in future 5hmC analyses. We also provide a novel method for validating the presence of 5hmC at low levels, and highlight some of the pitfalls associated with measuring 5hmC and 5mC.

Abstract 374: A novel sequencing method for genome-wide profiling of 5-hydroxymethylcytosine with single-base resolution

Abstract 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) is an epigenetic mark abundant in embryo stem cells and brain tissues. The exact biological functions of 5hmC are still under close investigation although several lines of evidence have indicated it could be involved in active DNA demethylation. Meanwhile, extensive studies have been carried out to determine its genomic distribution. A number of approaches have been developed using either affinity based enrichment, such as hMeDIP, that rely on antibody and other specific binding proteins to target 5hmC, or modified bisulfite sequencing, namely oxidative bisulfite sequencing (OxBS) and TET assisted bisulfite sequencing (TAB-sequencing). However, all those methods have limitations which hamper their application. For example, affinity based methods lack single base resolution while modified bisulfite sequencing methods require efficient chemical or enzymatic oxidation which cannot be easily achieved or guaranteed. As an alternative, we have developed a novel genome-wide sequencing method that utilizes an enzyme based modification approach coupled with bisulfite-sequencing for detecting 5hmC. This methodology allows quantification of 5hmC levels with single CpG resolution and can also be employed for locus-specific assays. Using this method, we were able to map and quantify 5hmC sites at the genomic scale for several different biological samples. This novel method can determine the exact location and abundance of 5hmC, which will facilitate our understanding of 5hmC in regulating gene expression in different biological contexts. Citation Format: Xueguang Sun, Tzu-Hung Chung, Yap Ching Chew, Darany Tan, Xi-Yu Jia. A novel sequencing method for genome-wide profiling of 5-hydroxymethylcytosine with single-base resolution. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 374. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-374

OxBS-450K: A method for analysing hydroxymethylation using 450K BeadChips

DNA methylation analysis has become an integral part of biomedical research. For high-throughput applications such as epigenome-wide association studies, the Infinium HumanMethylation450 (450K) BeadChip is currently the platform of choice. However, BeadChip processing relies on traditional bisulfite (BS) based protocols which cannot discriminate between 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC). Here, we report the adaptation of the recently developed oxidative bisulfite (oxBS) chemistry to specifically detect both 5mC and 5hmC in a single workflow using 450K BeadChips, termed oxBS-450K. Supported by validation using mass spectrometry and pyrosequencing, we demonstrate reproducible (R2>0.99) detection of 5hmC in human brain tissue using the optimised oxBS-450K protocol described here.

Quantitative sequencing of 5-formylcytosine in DNA at single-base resolution.

Recently, the cytosine modifications 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) and 5-formylcytosine (5fC) were found to exist in the genomic deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) of a wide range of mammalian cell types. It is now important to understand their role in normal biological function and disease. Here we introduce reduced bisulfite sequencing (redBS-Seq), a quantitative method to decode 5fC in DNA at single-base resolution, based on a selective chemical reduction of 5fC to 5hmC followed by bisulfite treatment. After extensive validation on synthetic and genomic DNA, we combined redBS-Seq and oxidative bisulfite sequencing (oxBS-Seq) to generate the first combined genomic map of 5-methylcytosine, 5hmC and 5fC in mouse embryonic stem cells. Our experiments revealed that in certain genomic locations 5fC is present at comparable levels to 5hmC and 5mC. The combination of these chemical methods can quantify and precisely map these three cytosine derivatives in the genome and will help provide insights into their function.

Oxidative bisulfite sequencing of 5-methylcytosine and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine

To uncover the function of and interplay between the mammalian cytosine modifications 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC), new techniques and advances in current technology are needed. To this end, we have developed oxidative bisulfite sequencing (oxBS-seq), which can quantitatively locate 5mC and 5hmC marks at single-base resolution in genomic DNA. In bisulfite sequencing (BS-seq), both 5mC and 5hmC are read as cytosines and thus cannot be discriminated; however, in oxBS-seq, specific oxidation of 5hmC to 5-formylcytosine (5fC) and conversion of the newly formed 5fC to uracil (under bisulfite conditions) means that 5hmC can be discriminated from 5mC. A positive readout of actual 5mC is gained from a single oxBS-seq run, and 5hmC levels are inferred by comparison with a BS-seq run. Here we describe an optimized second-generation protocol that can be completed in 2 d.

MLML: consistent simultaneous estimates of DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation

Motivation: The two major epigenetic modifications of cytosines, 5-methylcytosine (5-mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5-hmC), coexist with each other in a range of mammalian cell populations. Increasing evidence points to important roles of 5-hmC in demethylation of 5-mC and epigenomic regulation in development. Recently developed experimental methods allow direct single-base profiling of either 5-hmC or 5-mC. Meaningful analyses seem to require combining these experiments with bisulfite sequencing, but doing so naively produces inconsistent estimates of 5-mC or 5-hmC levels.Results: We present a method to jointly model read counts from bisulfite sequencing, oxidative bisulfite sequencing and Tet-Assisted Bisulfite sequencing, providing simultaneous estimates of 5-hmC and 5-mC levels that are consistent across experiment types.Availability: http://smithlab.usc.edu/software/mlmlContact: andrewds@usc.eduSupplementary information: Supplementary material is available at Bioinformatics online.

Effects of Dppa3 on DNA Methylation Dynamics During Primordial Germ Cell Development in Mice1

DNA methylation is a central epigenetic event that regulates cellular differentiation, reprogramming, and pathogenesis. Genomewide DNA demethylation occurs in preimplantation embryos and in embryonic germ cell precursors called primordial germ cells (PGCs). We previously showed that Dppa3, also known as Stella and PGC7, protects the maternal genome from tet methylcytosine dioxygenase 3 (Tet3)-mediated conversion of 5-methylcytosine (5mC) to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) in zygotes. Here, we demonstrated that retrotransposon genes, such as long interspersed nuclear element-1 (Line-1) and intracisternal A particle (IAP), showed higher 5mC levels in Dppa3-null PGCs. In contrast, oxidative bisulfite sequence analysis revealed that the amounts of 5hmC in Line-1 and IAP were slightly reduced in the Dppa3-deficient PGCs. From our findings, we propose that Dppa3 is involved in the Tet-mediated active demethylation process during reprogramming of PGCs.

Locus-Specific DNA Methylation Reprogramming During Early Porcine Embryogenesis1

During early mammalian embryogenesis, there is a wave of DNA demethylation postfertilization and de novo methylation around implantation. The paternal genome undergoes active DNA demethylation, whereas the maternal genome is passively demethylated after fertilization in most mammals except for sheep and rabbits. However, the emerging genome-wide DNA methylation landscape has revealed a regulatory and locus-specific DNA methylation reprogramming pattern in mammalian preimplantation embryos. Here we optimized a bisulfite sequencing protocol to draw base-resolution DNA methylation profiles of several selected genes in gametes, early embryos, and somatic tissue. We observed locus-specific DNA methylation reprogramming in early porcine embryos. First, some pluripotency genes (POU5F1 and NANOG) followed a typical wave of DNA demethylation and remethylation, whereas CpG-rich regions of SOX2 and CDX2 loci were hypomethylated throughout development. Second, a differentially methylated region of an imprint control region in the IGF2/H19 locus exhibited differential DNA methylation which was maintained in porcine early embryos. Third, a centromeric repeat element retained a moderate DNA methylation level in gametes, early embryos, and somatic tissue. The diverse DNA methylation reprogramming during early embryogenesis is thought to be possibly associated with the multiple functions of DNA methylation in transcriptional regulation, genome stability and genomic imprinting. The latest technology such as oxidative bisulfite sequencing to identify 5-hydroxymethylcytosine will further clarify the DNA methylation reprogramming during porcine embryonic development.

Sulfonated cellulose nanofibrils obtained from wood pulp through regioselective oxidative bisulfite pre-treatment

The consecutive pre-treatment of cellulose with periodate and bisulfite was used as a new potential method to promote nanofibrillation of hardwood pulp and to obtain nanofibrils with sulfonated functionality. Nanofibrils having typical widths of 10–60 nm were obtained from sulfonated celluloses having low anionic charge densities (0.18–0.51 mmol/g) by direct high-pressure homogenization without the use of any mechanical pre-treatments. The aqueous nanofibrils existed as highly viscous and transparent gels and possessed cellulose I crystalline structures with crystallinity indexes of approximately 40 %. A transparent film was obtained from sulfonated nanofibrils having tensile strength of 164 ± 4 MPa and Young’s modulus of 13.5 ± 0.4 MPa. Oxidative sulfonation was shown to be a potential green method to promote nanofibrillation of cellulose, as it avoids the production of halogenated wastes, because the periodate used can be efficiently regenerated and recycled as shown in the preliminary experiments.

The Progress on Sequencing and Detection of Hydroxymethylated DNA

The recently re-discovered 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) is established as the sixth base and found in various mammalian tissues. Although the content of 5hmC is much lower than that of the best known epigenetic mark 5-methylcytosine (5mC), 5hmC plays key roles in nuclear reprogramming, regulates the gene activity, and initiates the DNA demethylation in mammals. The formation of 5hmC results from the oxidation of 5mC in genomic DNA, which is mediated by Tet (ten eleven translocation) family dioxygenases. The Tet-mediated 5mC oxidation has just been identified. The 5hmC formation can cause DNA replication-dependent and passive DNA demethylation, meanwhile, it can also induce active DNA demethylation by further oxidation forming 5-formylcytosine (5fC) and 5-carboxylcytosine (5caC), which can be removed by base excision repair. Essentially, the discovery of 5fC and 5caC indicates the occurrence of active DNA demethylation mechanisms. The 5fC and 5caC have been detected in genomic DNA of mouse embryonic stem cells, but 5hmC has been found in various tissues. The 5hmC abundance in genomic DNA of certain tumors is found to be associated with the tumor process. However, the genome-wide distribution and sequence selectivity of 5hmC are not known yet. 5hmC cannot be dis- criminated from 5mC by the well-known bisulfite sequencing. Therefore, it is essential to develop new methods and tech- nologies for detecting and sequencing 5hmC. To this purpose, the two or more of the technologies for modification of 5hmC by glucosylation or chemical labeling, restriction enzymatic digestion, affinity capture, liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry, and bisulfite sequencing are combined. The further combination with next-generation high-throughput DNA sequencing technologies may provide genome-wide information. The single molecule real time DNA sequencing is also of choice to detect 5hmC at the gene level or the genome level. Recently, oxidative bisulfite sequencing was for the first time developed for quantitative mapping of 5hmC in genomic DNA at single base resolution. The genome-wide 5hmC sequencing at single base resolution is also reported. Here we briefly review and discuss the detection and sequencing technologies for 5hmC analysis. Keywords 5-hydroxymethylcytosine; 5-methylcytosine; DNA sequencing