DNA methylation patterns reflect epigenetic reprogramming in bovine embryos.

To understand the epigenetic alterations associated with assisted reproduction technology (ART) and the reprogramming of gene expression that follows somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), we screened a panel of 41 amplicons representing 25 developmentally important genes on 15 different chromosomes (a total of 1079 CpG sites). Methylation analysis was performed on DNA from pools of 80 blastocysts representing three classes of embryos. This revealed a subset of amplicons that distinguish between embryos developing in vivo, produced in vitro, or reconstructed by SCNT.

Maternal farm exposure modulates neonatal immune mechanisms through regulatory T cells.

Background: Cross-sectional studies suggest that maternal exposure to farming decreases the risk of allergic diseases in offspring. The potential underlying immunologic mechanisms are not understood.

Objective: We sought to assess whether maternal farm exposure activates regulatory T (Treg) cells in cord blood, exerting T(H)2-suppressive effects after microbial stimulation.

Loss of FOXP3 expression in natural human CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells upon repetitive in vitro stimulation.

The adoptive transfer of CD4(+)CD25(+) natural regulatory T cells (Treg) is a promising strategy for the treatment of autoimmune diseases and the prevention of alloresponses after transplantation. Clinical trials exploring this strategy require efficient in vitro expansion of this rare cell population. Protocols developed thus far rely on high-grade purification of Treg prior to culture initiation, a process still hampered by the lack of Treg cell-specific surface markers.

Quantitative DNA methylation analysis of FOXP3 as a new method for counting regulatory T cells in peripheral blood and solid tissue.

Regulatory T-cells (Treg) have been the focus of immunologic research due to their role in establishing tolerance for harmless antigens versus allowing immune responses against foes. Increased Treg frequencies measured by mRNA expression or protein synthesis of the Treg marker FOXP3 were found in various cancers, indicating that dysregulation of Treg levels contributes to tumor establishment. Furthermore, they constitute a key target of immunomodulatory therapies in cancer as well as transplantation settings.

DNA demethylation in the human FOXP3 locus discriminates regulatory T cells from activated FOXP3(+) conventional T cells.

The transcription factor FOXP3 is critical for development and function of regulatory T cells (Treg). Their number and functioning appears to be crucial in the prevention of autoimmunity and allergy, but also to be a negative prognostic marker for various solid tumors. Although expression of the transcription factor FOXP3 currently constitutes the best-known marker for Treg, in humans, transient expression is also observed in activated non-Treg.

Array CGH identifies reciprocal 16p13.1 duplications and deletions that predispose to autism and/or mental retardation.

Autism and mental retardation (MR) are often associated, suggesting that these conditions are etiologically related. Recently, array-based comparative genomic hybridization (array CGH) has identified submicroscopic deletions and duplications as a common cause of MR, prompting us to search for such genomic imbalances in autism. Here we describe a 1.

Gene expression profile of mouse bone marrow stromal cells determined by cDNA microarray analysis.

Bone marrow stromal cells (BMSC) have gained increased attention because of their multipotency and adult stem cell character. They have been shown to differentiate into other cell types of the mesenchymal lineage and also into non-mesenchymal cells. The exact identity of the original cells, which are isolated from bone marrow by their selective adherence to plastic, remains unknown to date.

Phylogenetic analysis of 18S rRNA and the mitochondrial genomes of the wombat, Vombatus ursinus, and the spiny anteater, Tachyglossus aculeatus: increased support for the Marsupionta hypothesis.

The monotremes, the duck-billed platypus and the echidnas, are characterized by a number of unique morphological characteristics, which have led to the common belief that they represent the living survivors of an ancestral stock of mammals. Analysis of new data from the complete mitochondrial (mt) genomes of a second monotreme, the spiny anteater, and another marsupial, the wombat, yielded clear support for the Marsupionta hypothesis. According to this hypothesis marsupials are more closely related to monotremes than to eutherians, consistent with a basal split between eutherians and marsupials/monotremes among extant mammals.