Cytoplasmic Localization of Oocyte-Specific Variant of Porcine DNA Methyltransferase-1 During Early Development

DNA methyltransferase-1 (Dnmt1) is involved in the maintenance of genomic methylation patterns. Rather than full-length Dnmt1, mouse oocytes have a truncated variant called Dnmt1o. Immunofluorescence data showed that Dnmt1o localized to the cytoplasm, but this has not been confirmed using more direct methods. The cytoplasmic localization of Dnmt1o has been assigned to the main cause of global DNA demethylation in early mouse embryos. We studied localization of Dnmt1o in mouse and pig embryos. We identified pig Dnmt1o protein and its transcript with unique 5'-end sequence. Physically separating mouse and pig 2-cell embryos into their nuclear and cytoplasmic components demonstrated that Dnmt1o of both species localized to the cytoplasm. Cloned pig embryos had Dnmt1o as the main form, with no indication of somatic Dnmt1. These findings indicate that Dnmt1o is cytoplasmic during early development; its presence in both pig and mouse embryos further suggests that Dnmt1o is conserved in mammals. Developmental Dynamics 238:1666-1673, 2009. (C) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.