Epigenetic Pattern on the Human Y Chromosome Is Evolutionarily Conserved.

oleh: Minjie Zhang, Chuan-Chao Wang, Caiyun Yang, Hao Meng, Ikechukwu O Agbagwa, Ling-Xiang Wang, Yingzhi Wang, Shi Yan, Shancheng Ren, Yinghao Sun, Gang Pei, Xin Liu, Jiang Liu, Li Jin, Hui Li, Yingli Sun

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2016-01-01

Deskripsi

DNA methylation plays an important role for mammalian development. However, it is unclear whether the DNA methylation pattern is evolutionarily conserved. The Y chromosome serves as a powerful tool for the study of human evolution because it is transferred between males. In this study, based on deep-rooted pedigrees and the latest Y chromosome phylogenetic tree, we performed epigenetic pattern analysis of the Y chromosome from 72 donors. By comparing their respective DNA methylation level, we found that the DNA methylation pattern on the Y chromosome was stable among family members and haplogroups. Interestingly, two haplogroup-specific methylation sites were found, which were both genotype-dependent. Moreover, the African and Asian samples also had similar DNA methylation pattern with a remote divergence time. Our findings indicated that the DNA methylation pattern on the Y chromosome was conservative during human male history.