TBX15, which encodes a differentiation-related transcription factor, displays promoter-adjacent DNA hypermethylation in myoblasts and skeletal muscle (psoas) that is absent from non-expressing cells in other lineages. By whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS) and enzymatic methyl-seq (EM-seq), these hypermethylated regions were found to border both sides of a constitutively unmethylated promoter. To understand the functionality of this DNA hypermethylation, we cloned the differentially methylated sequences (DMRs) in CpG-free reporter vectors and tested them for promoter or enhancer activity upon transient transfection. These cloned regions exhibited strong promoter activity and, when placed upstream of a weak promoter, strong enhancer activity specifically in myoblast host cells. In vitro CpG methylation targeted to the DMR sequences in the plasmids resulted in 86–100% loss of promoter or enhancer activity, depending on the insert sequence. These results as well as chromatin epigenetic and transcription profiles for this gene in various cell types support the hypothesis that DNA hypermethylation immediately upstream and downstream of the unmethylated promoter region suppresses enhancer/extended promoter activity, thereby downmodulating, but not silencing, expression in myoblasts and certain kinds of skeletal muscle. This promoter-border hypermethylation was not found in cell types with a silent TBX15 gene, and these cells, instead, exhibit repressive chromatin in and around the promoter. TBX18, TBX2, TBX3 and TBX1 display TBX15-like hypermethylated DMRs at their promoter borders and preferential expression in myoblasts. Therefore, promoter-adjacent DNA hypermethylation for downmodulating transcription to prevent overexpression may be used more frequently for transcription regulation than currently appreciated. Full article

Profiling of 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) in the brain regions of rhesus monkey at different ages reveals accumulation and tissue-specific patterns of 5hmC with aging. Region-specific differentially hydroxymethylated regions (DhMRs) are involved in neuronal functions and signal transduction. These data suggest that 5hmC may be a key regulator of gene transcription in neurodevelopment and thus a potential candidate for the epigenetic clock. Importantly, non-human primates are the ideal animal models for investigation of human aging and diseases not only because they are more genetically similar to humans but also epigenetically. Full article