DNA Methylation Status in Tissues of Sheep Clones

Genomic imprinting and DNA methylation play an important role in mammalian development. Many cloned animals showed heterogeneous DNA methylation profiles. However, there are fewer reports in cloned lambs because of a lack of genomic imprinting information. In this study, we investigated DNA methylation patterns in CpG islands and differentially methylated regions of putative imprinted gene Peg10 and imprinted genes Dlk1, Igf2R and H19 in cloned lambs. Five organs from two cloned lambs died shortly after birth and two normal controls were investigated. We observed normal DNA methylation profiles in cloned lambs. The imprinted genes Dlk1, Igf2R and H19 in livers, kidneys, hearts, muscles and lungs of the two cloned lambs exhibited relatively normal DNA methylation, except for Peg10 showing some differences between controls and cloned lambs. Our results indicate that somatic cell nuclear transfer-produced sheep exhibited relatively normal DNA methylation pattern and experienced normal DNA methylation reprogramming at imprinted loci.