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First published online October 12, 2006

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(Non)coding for silence

During early embryogenesis, epigenetic marks (e.g. DNA methylation) are added to clusters of imprinted genes to direct their subsequent expression from one parental allele. Lewis, Green and co-workers have been analysing the epigenetic modifications to, and the allele-specific expression patterns of, the genes in the mouse Kcnq1 imprinted domain and now describe the epigenetic dynamics of this cluster (see p. 4203). The Kcnq1 domain contains one paternally expressed gene (the non-coding antisense transcript Kcnq1ot1), several nearby genes that are paternally repressed in all lineages by this transcript and other more distant genes that are paternally repressed in only placental lineages. The researchers report that Kcnq1ot1 silences the ubiquitously imprinted genes by the blastocyst stage - a similar timing to that of imprinted X inactivation. By contrast, the genes that are imprinted only in the placenta, although also regulated by Kcnq1ot1, are inactivated later during trophoblast differentiation. The researchers conclude that epigenetic gene silencing by non-coding RNA may depend on the distance from the RNA and on lineage- and differentiation-specific factors.

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Related articles in Development:

Epigenetic dynamics of the Kcnq1 imprinted domain in the early embryo

Annabelle Lewis, Kelly Green, Claire Dawson, Lisa Redrup, Khanh D. Huynh, Jeannie T. Lee, Myriam Hemberger, and Wolf Reik
Development 2006 133: 4203-4210. [Abstract] [Full Text]  

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Related articles in Development Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?