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Hypermethylation of CpGs in the Promoter of the COL1A1 Gene in the Aged Periodontal Ligament

¹ Division of Aging and Geriatric Dentistry, Department of Oral Function and Morphology, Tohoku University Graduate School of Dentistry, 4-1, Seiryo-machi, Aobaku, Sendai 980-8575, Japan;
² The Tohoku University 21st Century COE Program Comprehensive Research and Education Center for Planning of Drug Development and Clinical Evaluation (CRESCENDO), 2-1, Seiryo-machi, Aobaku, Sendai 980-8575, Japan; and
³ Department of Cell Biology, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, 2-1, Seiryo-machi, Aobaku, Sendai 980-8575, Japan

^* corresponding author, tono{at}mail.tains.tohoku.ac.jp

Although the human periodontal ligament shows age-associated histological alterations, the molecular mechanisms are not yet understood. We previously found that COL1A1 gene expression declines with age. In this study, we asked whether DNA methylation in the regulatory region of the gene alters in the aging process, as a possible cause of the decline. The method used was a bisulfite modification of cytosine and nucleotide sequencing of DNA. While the 1st intron region was kept demethylated at young and old ages, the levels of methylation at most CpG sites in the proximal and distal regions of the promoter showed elevation at older ages. Analysis of the data indicates the possible importance of DNA hypermethylation in the promoter region for the age-associated decrease of COL1A1 gene expression.

KEY WORDS: COL1A1 • DNA methylation • CpG islands • aging • periodontal ligament • human