Permissive Transcriptional Activity at the Centromere through Pockets of DNA Hypomethylation

Abstract

DNA methylation is a hallmark of transcriptional silencing, yet transcription has been reported at the centromere. To address this apparent paradox, we employed a fully sequence-defined ectopic human centromere (or neocentromere) to investigate the relationship between DNA methylation and transcription. We used sodium bisulfite PCR and sequencing to determine the methylation status of 2,041 CpG dinucleotides distributed across a 6.76-Mbp chromosomal region containing a neocentromere. These CpG dinucleotides were associated with conventional and nonconventional CpG islands. We found an overall hypermethylation of the neocentric DNA at nonconventional CpG islands that we designated as CpG islets and CpG orphans. The observed hypermethylation was consistent with the presence of a presumed transcriptionally silent chromatin state at the neocentromere. Within this neocentric chromatin, specific sites of active transcription and the centromeric chromatin boundary are defined by DNA hypomethylation. Our data demonstrate, for the first time to our knowledge, a correlation between DNA methylation and centromere formation in mammals, and that transcription and “chromatin-boundary activity” are permissible at the centromere through the selective hypomethylation of pockets of sequences without compromising the overall silent chromatin state and function of the centromere. The centromere is a chromosomal structure that is vital for the correct partitioning of chromosomes during cell division. Recent studies in a number of different species have shown that transcription is permissible within the centromere, but the mode of transcription regulation at the centromere remains unclear. DNA methylation is a well-characterized mechanism for the genomic regulation of transcription. Here, the authors investigate the relationship between DNA methylation and transcription activity at a functional human centromere. They demonstrate a high level of DNA methylation across the centromere but identify pockets of DNA sequences within the methylated domain that are non-methylated. These pockets correspond to sites of transcription and/or boundaries that separate major centromeric chromatin sub-domains. This study shows the complexity of the centromere as it uses DNA methylation to both maintain a tight chromatin structure and to allow transcription to occur.