DNA methylation in the fungi

Abstract

A systematic study on the incidence and patterns of cytosine methylation in the fungi has been carried out by restriction and nearest-neighbor analysis of DNAs isolated from undifferentiated cells of several fungal species. With respect to DNA modification, the fungi appear to be a heterogeneous group, with a 5-methylcytosine content ranging from undetectable levels (less than or equal to 0.1% of cytosine residues methylated in 18 out of 20 species tested) to low but detectable levels (e.g. congruent to 0.2 and congruent to 0.5% of the total cytosines methylated in Sporotrichum dimorphosporum and Phycomyces blakesleeanus, respectively). In the species where it has been detected, 5-methylcytosine is located mostly at CpG doublets, and the methylated sites are clustered in long tracts (10-30 kilobase pairs) separated from essentially unmethylated regions. This methylated compartment, which comprises a small fraction (1-11%) of the total DNA, contains at least a specific set of repetitive sequences. These results contrast with the higher 5-methylcytosine content found in the fungus Physarum polycephalum and in vertebrates and higher plants.