Epigenetic analysis of high and low motile sperm populations reveals methylation variation in satellite regions within the pericentromeric position and in genes functionally related to sperm DNA organization and maintenance in Bos taurus.

The characterization of the epigenome in HM and LM Bos taurus sperm populations provides a first step towards the understanding of the effect of methylation on sperm fertility. Methylation variation observed in HM and LM populations in genes associated to DNA structure remodelling as well as in a repetitive element in pericentric regions suggests that maintenance of chromosome structure through epigenetic regulation is probably crucial for correct sperm functionality.