UNASSIGNED: There is now strong evidence that the paternal contribution to offspring phenotype at fertilisation is more than just DNA. However, the identity and mechanisms of this nongenetic inheritance are poorly understood. One of the more important questions in this research area is: do changes in sperm DNA methylation have phenotypic consequences for offspring? We have previously reported that offspring of @entity28 male @entity35 have altered @entity413 metabolism compared with controls and that this effect was inherited through nongenetic means. Here, we describe investigations into sperm DNA methylation in a new cohort using the same protocol. Male @entity35 on a high-fat diet were 30% heavier than control-fed males at the time of mating (16-19 weeks old, n = 14/14). A small (0.25%) increase in total @entity48722 was detected in @entity28 @entity35 spermatozoa by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Examination of the repetitive fraction of the genome with @entity5498 -CpG binding domain protein-enriched genome sequencing (MBD-Seq) and pyrosequencing revealed that retrotransposon DNA methylation states in spermatozoa were not affected by @entity28 , but methylation at satellite repeats throughout the genome was increased. However, examination of muscle, liver, and spermatozoa from male 27-week-old offspring from @entity28 and control fathers (both groups from n = 8 fathers) revealed that normal DNA methylation levels were restored during offspring development. Furthermore, no changes were found in three genomic imprints in @entity28 @entity35 spermatozoa. Our findings have implications for transgenerational epigenetic reprogramming. They suggest that postfertilization mechanisms exist for normalising some environmentally-induced DNA methylation changes in sperm cells.

Obesity-induced sperm DNA methylation changes at satellite repeats are reprogrammed in XXXX offspring.

@entity48722 :: ('MESH:C016569', 'Chemical') :: ['5-methyl-2  -deoxycytidine'] @entity28 :: ('MESH:D009765', 'Disease') :: ['obese', 'obesity'] @entity5498 :: ('CHEBI:32875', 'Chemical') :: ['methyl'] @entity35 :: ('10116', 'Species') :: ['rat', 'rats'] @entity413 :: ('MESH:D005947', 'Chemical') :: ['glucose']
@entity35 :: (10116,Species) :: ['rat']
