NIEHS Mouse Methylome Project: What We Can Learn from the Epigenomic Landscape

The mouse is an important tool in molecular genetics which can be manipulated to study the relationship of genes and the epigenome for insights into human disease.  The NIEHS Mouse Methylome Project is a cross-disciplinary effort to completely map and organize DNA methylation in mouse liver.  We are using advanced next generation sequencing technologies, biocomputation, biostatistics and molecular biology to create a high-resolution map of the mouse liver 5’-methylcytosine genome from three different mouse strains with differential sensitivity to chemically-induced toxicity and disease.  The methylome, genome and transcriptome of paternal strains and F1 male and female offspring are being compared to answer questions on how the epigenomic landscape varies between strains and genders and also about epigenomic inheritance to offspring and differences among siblings.  Characterization of the mouse epigenome and gene expression in key tissues could provide an experimental means for investigating similar questions about epigenomic responsiveness to varying nutritional status and disease susceptibility.