The mammalian zygote is a platform for a multi-act show of dramatic rises and falls in DNA methylation. However, new research suggests that backstage, in the developing oocyte, resides the real star of the show: Stella. Stella oversees the complex choreography of DNA methyltransferases and the supporting cast to make sure the right cues are […]
- zygote
Single-Cell DNA Methylomes Reveal the Reprograming Secrets of Early Human Embryos
You’ve heard before that timing is everything, and this is doubly true in developmental biology. New research out of Fuchou Tang’s lab (Peking University, Beijing) singles in on the timing of methylation changes during embryonic development, and exposes the delicate epigenetic dance of global demethylation and targeted remethylation. Tang’s lab is no stranger to embryonic […]
CRISPR-Cas9 Embryo Editing…….Of Mice and Men!
Presumably after a day spent in a local tavern instead of writing and editing verse, the famous Scottish poet Robert Burns noted that “The best laid schemes of mice and men, Often go awry”. However, a new study of genome editing in the embryos of mice and men led by Kathy K. Niakan (Francis Crick […]
LINE-1 Retrotransposons Keep Early Embryonic Chromatin in Line
While cocktails and embryonic development usually don’t mix well, a cocktail of three transcription-activator-like effectors (TALEs) has just shaken up our understanding of the role LINE-1 retrotransposons during early embryonic development. LINE-1 activation had been considered a consequence of developmental processes, but now a talented team from the lab of Maria-Elena Torres-Padilla at the German […]
Genomic Imprinting’s Alternative Choices: H3K27me3 and 5hmC
In today’s world, where choices are a plenty, alternative is a fashionable choice. When it comes to genomic imprinting, traditionalists swear by DNA cytosine methylation (5mC); however, sometimes imprinting turns to alternative epigenetic marks. Genomic imprinting is typically driven by 5mC at imprinting control regions (ICRs), where it represses the expression of the marked allele […]