Genomic analysis in Xenopus limb bud regeneration

To reveal cellular properties of regenerating limb bud cells in Xenopus limb bud regeneration, we analyzed genome-wide histone modifications. The trimethylation of histone H3 at lysine 4 (H3K4me3) is closely related to an open chromatin structure that allows transcription factors access to genes, whereas the trimethylation of histone H3 at lysine 27 (H3K27me3) is related to a closed chromatin state that blocks transcription-factor access. We compared these two modification profiles by high-throughput sequencing of samples prepared from the intact limb bud and the regenerative blastema by chromatin immunoprecipitation.