The paper investigates whether CA repeats are primary targets of MeCP2 and finds no evidence supporting this hypothesis, instead showing they contribute modestly to MeCP2-mediated gene expression.

Life Science Alliance · Sep 19, 2022Peer-reviewedGenomics

Neuronal non-CG methylation is an essential target for MeCP2 function

Rebekah Tillotson, Justyna Cholewa-Waclaw, Kashyap Chhatbar, John C. Connelly, Sophie A. Kirschner, Shaun Webb, Martha V. Koerner, Jim Selfridge, David A. Kelly, Dina De Sousa, Kyla Brown, Matthew J. Lyst, Skirmantas Kriaučionis, Adrian Peter Bird

This study shows that MeCP2's binding to non-CG methylation, specifically mCAC trinucleotides, is critical for normal brain function, as demonstrated by severe Rett syndrome-like phenotypes in mice with a modified MeCP2 domain.

Molecular Cell · Feb 8, 2021Peer-reviewedGenetics

Domains of methylated CAC and CG target MeCP2 to tune transcription in the brain

Sabine Lagger, John C. Connelly, Gabriele Schweikert, Shaun Webb, Jim Selfridge, Bernard H. Ramsahoye, Miao Yu, Dina DeSousa, Christian Seiser, Chuan He, Guido Sanguinetti, Lawrence C. Sowers, Malcolm D. Walkinshaw, Adrian Peter Bird

The paper shows MeCP2 binds to mCG and mCAC sequences in mouse brain, with binding density correlating with transcriptional regulation of neuronal genes.

PLoS Genetics · May 12, 2017Peer-reviewedMolecular Biology