Functional analysis of DNA methylation of the PACSIN1 promoter in pig peripheral blood mononuclear cells

DNA methylation plays essential roles in regulating the activity of genes and may contribute to understanding the potential epigenetic biomarkers response to viruses. To explore the function of DNA methylation of protein kinase C and casein kinase substrate in neurons 1 (PACSNI1) promoter, herein we performed the bisulfite sequencing polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis to verify hypermethylation and downregulation of PACSIN1 expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of pig as the vitro model. Promoter methylation could reduce the transcriptional activity of the PACSIN1 gene potentially by affecting the binding of transcription factor Sp1. In addition, downregulation of the PACSIN1 gene expression could facilitate the production of interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-8, tumor necrosis factor , and NECAP2. The comprehensive analysis of PACSIN1 methylation and its function will help us to understand the gene to be served as an important candidate gene in pig for disease resistance breeding and aid in the identification of potential epigenetic biomarkers associated with responsiveness to viruses.