Maternal repression of imprinted genes in endosperm by gene body demethylation
- 1University of Georgia Department of Plant Biology
Abstract
Removal of TE-like DNA methylation from regulatory elements drives canonical genomic imprinting of both maternally and paternally expressed genes in endosperm (MEGs and PEGs). In both cases, the maternal copies are demethylated, allowing binding of either activating or repressing factors. Here we report that removal of CG-only gene body methylation also drives imprinting, resulting in maternally repressed PEGs as the most common form of imprinting in maize. These body methylated PEGs express broadly across tissues and lack H3K27me3 except in endosperm, where maternal copies acquire it in domains extending through and beyond genes. We also found that partial gene body demethylation is widespread in endosperm, usually does not result in imprinted expression, and is mediated by DNA glycosylases/lyases (DNGs). These and other data indicate that gene body methylation can shield select genes from PRC2 repression, and its maternal removal by DNGs explains the majority of PEGs in both maize and rice but has a weak impact in Arabidopsis thaliana. We hypothesize that increased gene expression noise arising from gene body demethylation--both with and without imprinting--is beneficial in endosperm.
Related
- Endosperm secretion remodels the maternal seed coat
- Parent-of-origin-dependent allelic regulation of social behaviors in mice by noncanonically imprinted monoamine synthesis genes
- Dynamic TET1 repression coordinates activation of macroH2A.2-poised bivalent genes during neuroectoderm differentiation
- Cell-type-specific repression reveals MC4R neurons as a site of action for ciliary obesity genes.
- An embryo-derived peptide signal directs endosperm polarity in Arabidopsis
BibTeX
@misc{dewan2026maternal,
title = {{Maternal repression of imprinted genes in endosperm by gene body demethylation}},
author = {C. Dewan and Y. Sun and J. I. Gent},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.29.755427},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.29.755427v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Maternal repression of imprinted genes in endosperm by gene body demethylation
AU - C. Dewan
AU - Y. Sun
AU - J. I. Gent
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/29
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.09.29.755427
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.29.755427v1
AB - Removal of TE-like DNA methylation from regulatory elements drives canonical genomic imprinting of both maternally and paternally expressed genes in endosperm (MEGs and PEGs). In both cases, the maternal copies are demethylated, allowing binding of either activating or repressing factors. Here we report that removal of CG-only gene body methylation also drives imprinting, resulting in maternally repressed PEGs as the most common form of imprinting in maize. These body methylated PEGs express broadly across tissues and lack H3K27me3 except in endosperm, where maternal copies acquire it in domains extending through and beyond genes. We also found that partial gene body demethylation is widespread in endosperm, usually does not result in imprinted expression, and is mediated by DNA glycosylases/lyases (DNGs). These and other data indicate that gene body methylation can shield select genes from PRC2 repression, and its maternal removal by DNGs explains the majority of PEGs in both maize and rice but has a weak impact in Arabidopsis thaliana. We hypothesize that increased gene expression noise arising from gene body demethylation--both with and without imprinting--is beneficial in endosperm.
ER -