DNA Methylation is Reduced in DNasel-Sensitive Regions of Plant Chromatin

Abstract
Pea, barley, and corn chromatin was isolated and subjected to limited digestion with DNasel. The preferentially degraded, small molecular weight fraction, presumably consisting of sequences in an active state of expression, was isolated and its 5-methylcytosine content determined. The DNasel-sensitive chromatin fraction from all three plant species investigated contained a markedly reduced level of DNA methylation compared to total DNA.