Detection of CpG methylation level using methyl-CpG-binding domain-fused fluorescent protein

Anal Methods. 2023 May 18;15(19):2294-2299. doi: 10.1039/d3ay00227f.

Abstract

Methylation of cytosine to 5-methylcytosine on CpG dinucleotides is the most frequently studied epigenetic modification involved in the regulation of gene expression. In normal tissues, tissue-specific CpG methylation patterns are established during development. In contrast, alterations in methylation patterns have been observed in abnormal cells, such as cancer cells. Cancer type-specific CpG methylation patterns have been identified and used as biomarkers for cancer diagnosis. In this study, we developed a hybridization-based CpG methylation level sensing system using a methyl-CpG-binding domain (MBD)-fused fluorescent protein. In this system, the target DNA is captured by a complementary methylated probe DNA. When the target DNA is methylated, a symmetrically methylated CpG is formed in the double-stranded DNA. MBD specifically recognizes symmetrical methyl-CpG on double-stranded DNA; therefore, the methylation level is quantified by measuring the fluorescence intensity of the bound MBD-fused fluorescent protein. We prepared MBD-fused AcGFP1 and quantified the CpG methylation levels of the target DNA against SEPT9, BRCA1, and long interspersed nuclear element-1 (LINE-1) using MBD-AcGFP1. This detection principle can be applied to the simultaneous and genome-wide modified base detection systems using microarrays coupled with modified base binding proteins fused to fluorescent proteins.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • CpG Islands / genetics
  • Cytosine / chemistry
  • DNA / chemistry
  • DNA Methylation* / genetics
  • DNA-Binding Proteins* / chemistry
  • DNA-Binding Proteins* / genetics
  • DNA-Binding Proteins* / metabolism

Substances

  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • Cytosine
  • DNA