A systematic evaluation of whole genome amplification of bisulfite-modified DNA

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Studying DNA methylation profiles in detail should be the first step in epigenetic research. Although sodium bisulfite modification of genomic DNA is the gold standard method for DNA methylation analysis, this method results in the loss of the majority of the DNA material. Whole genome amplification (WGA) of bisulfite-modified DNA is expected to provide a rich source of materials, but its validity has not been thoroughly evaluated. In this study, we evaluated the extent of biased amplification in the WGA of bisulfite-modified DNA and the reproducibility of independent WGA reactions. We performed the multiple displacement amplification-based WGA separately three times. Each experiment included two reactions using 10 or 50 ng of bisulfite-modified DNA as template. DNA methylation levels were compared between WGA products and original bisulfite-modified DNA at about 450,000 CpG sites.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Using a sufficient amount of bisulfite-modified DNA for WGA was critical for downstream application. The considerable deviations from original bisulfite-modified DNA were found in the middle range of DNA methylation levels. Distribution of hyper- and hypomethylation were equal, which suggested that the deviation at each CpG site occurred randomly. Averaging the data from independently amplified WGA products dramatically improved the overall quality.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>WGA of bisulfite-modified DNA could be a valuable tool for epigenetic research, but careful experimental design and data interpretation are required.</p

Intraperitoneal administration of AAV9-shRNA inhibits target gene expression in the dorsal root ganglia of neonatal mice

Abstract Background There is considerable interest in inducing RNA interference (RNAi) in neurons to study gene function and identify new targets for disease intervention. Although short interfering RNAs (siRNAs) have been used to silence genes in neurons, in vivo delivery of RNAi remains a major challenge, especially by systemic administration. We have developed a highly efficient method for in vivo gene silencing in dorsal root ganglia (DRG) by using short hairpin RNA–expressing single-stranded adeno-associated virus 9 (ssAAV9-shRNA). Results Intraperitoneal administration of ssAAV9-shRNA to neonatal mice resulted in highly effective and specific silencing of a target gene in DRG. We observed an approximately 80% reduction in target mRNA in the DRG, and 74.7% suppression of the protein was confirmed by Western blot analysis. There were no major side effects, and the suppression effect lasted for more than three months after the injection of ssAAV9-shRNA. Conclusions Although we previously showed substantial inhibition of target gene expression in DRG via intrathecal ssAAV9-shRNA administration, here we succeeded in inhibiting target gene expression in DRG neurons via intraperitoneal injection of ssAAV9-shRNA. AAV9-mediated delivery of shRNA will pave the way for creating animal models for investigating the molecular biology of the mechanisms of pain and sensory ganglionopathies