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Induction of altered epigenetic regulation of the hepatic glucocorticoid receptor in the offspring of rats fed a protein-restricted diet during pregnancy suggests that reduced DNA methyltransferase-1 expression is involved in impaired DNA methylation and changes in histone modifications

Induction of altered epigenetic regulation of the hepatic glucocorticoid receptor in the offspring of rats fed a protein-restricted diet during pregnancy suggests that reduced DNA methyltransferase-1 expression is involved in impaired DNA methylation and changes in histone modifications
Induction of altered epigenetic regulation of the hepatic glucocorticoid receptor in the offspring of rats fed a protein-restricted diet during pregnancy suggests that reduced DNA methyltransferase-1 expression is involved in impaired DNA methylation and changes in histone modifications
Prenatal nutritional constraint induces an altered metabolic phenotype in the offspring which in humans confers an increased risk of non-communicable disease. Feeding a protein-restricted (PR) diet to pregnant rats causes hypomethylation of specific gene promoters in the offspring and alters the phenotype. We investigated how altered epigenetic regulation of the hepatic glucocorticoid receptor (GR) 110 promoter is induced in the offspring. Rats were fed a control (180 g casein/kg) or a PR (90 g casein/kg) diet throughout pregnancy, and chow during lactation. Offspring were killed at postnatal day 34 (n 5 per maternal dietary group). Methylation-sensitive PCR showed that GR110 promoter methylation was 33 % lower (P < 0·001) and GR expression 84 % higher (P < 0·05) in the PR offspring. Reverse transcription–PCR showed that DNA methyltransferase-1 (Dnmt1) expression was 17 % lower (P < 0·05) in PR offspring, while Dnmt3a/b and methyl binding domain protein-2 expression was not altered. Thus hypomethylation of the GR110 promoter may result from lower capacity to methylate hemimethylated DNA during mitosis. Histone modifications which facilitate transcription were increased at the GR110 promoter (147–921 %, P < 0·001), while those that suppress methylation were decreased (54 %, P < 0·01) or similar to controls. In human umbilical cord (n 15), there was a 2-fold difference between the highest and lowest level of GR1-CTotal promoter methylation. Dnmt1, but not Dnmt3a, expression predicted 49 % (P = 0·003) of the variation in GR1-CTotal promoter methylation. These findings suggest that induction in the offspring of altered epigenetic regulation of the hepatic GR110 promoter, and hence metabolic phenotype, may be due to reduced Dnmt1 expression.
fetal programming, epigenetic, rat, glucocorticoid receptor, histones, human
0007-1145
1064-1073
Lillycrop, K.A.
eeaaa78d-0c4d-4033-a178-60ce7345a2cc
Slater-Jefferies, J.L.
e46c711a-9d4c-436a-b853-828df69bb4d7
Hanson, M.A.
1952fad1-abc7-4284-a0bc-a7eb31f70a3f
Godfrey, K.M.
0931701e-fe2c-44b5-8f0d-ec5c7477a6fd
Jackson, A.A.
c9a12d7c-b4d6-4c92-820e-890a688379ef
Burdge, G.C.
09d60a07-8ca1-4351-9bf1-de6ffcfb2159
Lillycrop, K.A.
eeaaa78d-0c4d-4033-a178-60ce7345a2cc
Slater-Jefferies, J.L.
e46c711a-9d4c-436a-b853-828df69bb4d7
Hanson, M.A.
1952fad1-abc7-4284-a0bc-a7eb31f70a3f
Godfrey, K.M.
0931701e-fe2c-44b5-8f0d-ec5c7477a6fd
Jackson, A.A.
c9a12d7c-b4d6-4c92-820e-890a688379ef
Burdge, G.C.
09d60a07-8ca1-4351-9bf1-de6ffcfb2159

Lillycrop, K.A., Slater-Jefferies, J.L., Hanson, M.A., Godfrey, K.M., Jackson, A.A. and Burdge, G.C. (2007) Induction of altered epigenetic regulation of the hepatic glucocorticoid receptor in the offspring of rats fed a protein-restricted diet during pregnancy suggests that reduced DNA methyltransferase-1 expression is involved in impaired DNA methylation and changes in histone modifications. British Journal of Nutrition, 97 (6), 1064-1073. (doi:10.1017/S000711450769196X).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Prenatal nutritional constraint induces an altered metabolic phenotype in the offspring which in humans confers an increased risk of non-communicable disease. Feeding a protein-restricted (PR) diet to pregnant rats causes hypomethylation of specific gene promoters in the offspring and alters the phenotype. We investigated how altered epigenetic regulation of the hepatic glucocorticoid receptor (GR) 110 promoter is induced in the offspring. Rats were fed a control (180 g casein/kg) or a PR (90 g casein/kg) diet throughout pregnancy, and chow during lactation. Offspring were killed at postnatal day 34 (n 5 per maternal dietary group). Methylation-sensitive PCR showed that GR110 promoter methylation was 33 % lower (P < 0·001) and GR expression 84 % higher (P < 0·05) in the PR offspring. Reverse transcription–PCR showed that DNA methyltransferase-1 (Dnmt1) expression was 17 % lower (P < 0·05) in PR offspring, while Dnmt3a/b and methyl binding domain protein-2 expression was not altered. Thus hypomethylation of the GR110 promoter may result from lower capacity to methylate hemimethylated DNA during mitosis. Histone modifications which facilitate transcription were increased at the GR110 promoter (147–921 %, P < 0·001), while those that suppress methylation were decreased (54 %, P < 0·01) or similar to controls. In human umbilical cord (n 15), there was a 2-fold difference between the highest and lowest level of GR1-CTotal promoter methylation. Dnmt1, but not Dnmt3a, expression predicted 49 % (P = 0·003) of the variation in GR1-CTotal promoter methylation. These findings suggest that induction in the offspring of altered epigenetic regulation of the hepatic GR110 promoter, and hence metabolic phenotype, may be due to reduced Dnmt1 expression.

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More information

Published date: 1 June 2007
Keywords: fetal programming, epigenetic, rat, glucocorticoid receptor, histones, human

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 56263
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/56263
ISSN: 0007-1145
PURE UUID: 35c66440-a76a-43e8-b2f9-e680c34f2baf
ORCID for K.A. Lillycrop: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-7350-5489
ORCID for J.L. Slater-Jefferies: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-8325-1320
ORCID for M.A. Hanson: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-6907-613X
ORCID for K.M. Godfrey: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-4643-0618
ORCID for G.C. Burdge: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-7665-2967

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Date deposited: 08 Aug 2008
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 03:50

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