Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1997 Nov;110(2):265-9.
doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2249.1997.tb08326.x.

Alteration of DNA methylation levels in MRL lupus mice

M Mizugaki  1 , T Yamaguchi, S Ishiwata, H Shindo, T Hishinuma, S Nozaki, M Nose
Affiliations

Alteration of DNA methylation levels in MRL lupus mice

M Mizugaki et al. Clin Exp Immunol. 1997 Nov.

Abstract

Recent reports suggest that DNA methylation is involved in the cause of autoimmune disease. We investigated the alteration of DNA methylation levels in lupus strains of mice, MRL/lpr as a model, which develop an age-dependent lymphadenopathy and autoimmune disease. DNA methylation levels of thymus and axillary lymph nodes in 20-week-old MRL/lpr mice, which are in an autoimmune disease state, were lower than those of 4-week-old MRL/lpr mice with no symptoms as yet. No significant changes were observed in MRL/+ strain mice, which seemed normal at least 20 weeks, while DNA methylation levels in the spleen of both strains of mice increased significantly from the age of 4 to 20 weeks. However, no significant changes of DNA methylation levels in peripheral blood were observed with ageing in MRL strains. Moreover, we clarified that administration of 5-azacytidine had a strong effect on longer survival of MRL/lpr mice and reduced DNA methylation levels in the axillary lymph nodes and spleen. The possible relevance of DNA methylation levels to the progression of autoimmune disease is discussed.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Liskay RM, Evans RJ. Inactive X chromosome DNA does not function in DNA-mediated cell transformation for the hypoxanthine phosphor-ibosyltransferase gene. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 1980;77:4895–8. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Riggs AD. DNA methylation and late replication probably aid cell memory, and type of DNA reeling could aid chromosome folding and enhancer function. Phil Trans R Soc London B. 1990;326:285–97. - PubMed
    1. Molloy PL, Watt F. DNA methylation and specific protein-DNA interactions. Phil Trans R Soc London B. 1990;326:2267–75. - PubMed
    1. Razin A, Cedar H. DNA methylation and genomic imprinting. Cell. 1994;77:473–6. - PubMed
    1. Cedar H. DNA methylation and gene activity. Cell. 1988;53:3–4. - PubMed