Department of Systems Biotechnology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17546, Republic of Korea.
Department of Plant Science and Technology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17546, Republic of Korea.
J Microbiol. 2021 Mar;59(3):242-248. doi: 10.1007/s12275-021-0674-y. Epub 2021 Feb 23.
DNA methylation is known as a universal mechanism of epigenetic regulation in all kingdoms of life. Particularly, given that prokaryotes lack key elements such as histones and nucleosomes that can structurally modify DNA, DNA methylation is considered a major epigenetic regulator in these organisms. However, because DNA methylation studies have focused primarily on eukaryotes, the mechanism of prokaryotic DNA methylation has been less studied than in eukaryotes. DNA methylation in prokaryotes plays an important role in regulating not only the host defense system, but also the cell cycle, gene expression, and virulence that can respond directly to the environment. Recent advances in sequencing techniques capable of detecting methylation signals have allowed for the characterization of prokaryotic genome-wide epigenetic regulation. In this review, we describe representative examples of cellular events regulated by DNA methylation in prokaryotes, from early studies to current applications.
DNA 甲基化是所有生命领域中一种普遍的表观遗传调控机制。特别是由于原核生物缺乏可以结构性修饰 DNA 的组蛋白和核小体等关键元件，因此 DNA 甲基化被认为是这些生物中的主要表观遗传调控因子。然而，由于 DNA 甲基化研究主要集中在真核生物上，因此原核生物 DNA 甲基化的机制研究比真核生物要少。原核生物中的 DNA 甲基化不仅在调节宿主防御系统方面发挥着重要作用，而且在细胞周期、基因表达和对环境的直接响应的毒力方面也发挥着重要作用。最近出现的能够检测甲基化信号的测序技术的进步，使得对原核生物全基因组表观遗传调控的特征描述成为可能。在这篇综述中，我们描述了从早期研究到当前应用中，原核生物中 DNA 甲基化调控的代表性细胞事件的实例。
