Effects of crude oil on DNA methylation in the Eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica.. Crassostrea virginica

In 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig run by British Petroleum (BP) suffered a catastrophic failure, releasing over four million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The oil spill and the subsequent cleanup efforts caused massive losses in shellfish aquaculture throughout the Gulf of Mexico. This study aimed to investigate the impact of oil exposure on an economically and environmentally important species, the Eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica). Oysters were exposed to 25,000ppm of oil and tissue was collected (ctenidia). DNA was isolated, enriched for methylated fractions, bisulfite treated and sequenced.