Genome-wide analysis of DNA methylation in grapevine fruits

To examine the grapevine genomic methylation landscape and assess its functional significance, we generated whole genome DNA methylome maps for grapevine fruits of developmental stages. The results showed that DNA methylation happened in the grapevine fruit ripening process, and mostly happened in the biological process from the first growth stage fruit transfer to the véraison stage fruit. It further demonstrated that DNA methylation repress the gene expression. The whole-genome methylomes of grapevine fruits obtained in this study have not only broadened our understanding of the mechanism and function of DNA methylation in plant genomes, but also provided valuable data for future studies of grapevine epigenetics and the epigenetic differentiation among different fruit developmental stages. Overall design: DNA methylation analysis of grapevine fruits during different developmental stages