Cis Regulatory

DNA Methylation Switches Help Explain What Makes Humans Unique

A study comparing human, chimpanzee, and hybrid cells shows that cis-regulatory DNA methylation—driven by changes at CpG sites—primarily drives methylation differences between humans and chimps, with effects rippling to nearby sites. These epigenetic shifts correlate with human-specific traits in cognition, development timing, craniofacial features, and disease susceptibility, suggesting DNA methylation coordinates regulatory changes beyond gene expression to help define what makes us human.