Abstract
A mouse-human somatic cell hybrid clone, deficient in hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) and containing a structurally normal inactive human X chromosome, was isolated. The hybrid cells were treated with 5-azacytidine and tested for the reactivation and expression ofhuman X-linked genes. The frequency of HPRT-positive clones after 5-azacytidine treatment was 1000-fold greater than that observed in untreated hybrid cells. Fourteen independent HPRT-positive clones were isolated and analyzed for the expression of human X markers. Isoelectric focusing showed that the HPRT expressed in these clones is human. One of the 14 clones expressed human glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and another expressed human phosphoglycerate kinase. Since 5-azacytidine treatment results in hypomethylation of DNA, DNA methylation may be a mechanism of human X chromosome inactivation.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 393-396 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Science |
| Volume | 211 |
| Issue number | 4480 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1981 |