Conservation and divergence of DNA methylation patterns and functions in vertebrates

Cytosine DNA methylation is a heritable epigenetic mark present in most eukaryotic groups. While the patterns and functions of DNA methylation have been extensively studied in mouse and human, their conservation in other vertebrates remain poorly explored. In this study, we interrogated the distribution and function of DNA methylation in primary cells of seven vertebrate species including bio-medical models and key livestock species. To study the conservation of DNA methylation patterns among vertebrates, we performed Whole Genome Bisulfite Sequencing (WGBS) in primary dermal fibroblasts from 7 vertebrate species (human, mouse, rabbit, dog, cow, pig, and chicken). To study the functions of DNA methylation, we performed RNA-seq in triplicates in control and 5-Aza-2′-deoxycytidine (5-AzadC) treated primary dermal fibroblasts from 6 vertebrate species (human, mouse, rabbit, cow, pig, and chicken). The effect of 5-AzadC treatment was validated by performing Reduced Representation Bisulfite Sequencing (RRBS) in control and 5-AzadC treated fibroblasts.