arabidopsis tissue-specific methylation project

DNA methylation at cytosine residues is an essential event required for the normal development of multicellular eukaryotes. In mammals, DNA methylation is restored to basal levels by the time of implantation, while the mechanisms of change in DNA methylation during normal development in plants remain controversial. In order to examine the role of DNA methylation in transcriptional regulation during plant development, we performed detailed and comparative analyses of both profile of DNA methylation and transcription obtained from different organs of Arabidopsis thaliana. Analyses of the resulting sequences have identified thousands of organ-specific or organ-enriched DNA methylation pattern. We discussed possible mechanisms and biological significance of organ- specific DNA methylation in plants.