The heart is a very complex organ and plays a major role in assuring proper circulation of blood, oxygen and nutrients. Cardiomyocytes are highly specialized cells that adapt to various physiological and pathophysiological needs of the heart. Researchers use sequencing to study the DNA methylomes of adult and newborn cardiomyocytes and failing hearts of mice. They observe dynamic epigenetic remodeling during development. They also identify isoform switching as the heart develops. In failing hearts, adult cardiomyocytes undergo epigenetic remodeling in response to chronic stress. Sequencing has given us first insights into how DNA methylation shapes the phenotype of specialized cells. For more information on applications of Illumina technology in the field of Epigenomics, please visit us at Illumina: Epigenetics http://www.illumina.com/applications/epigenetics.ilmn Products: HiSeq: http://www.illumina.com/systems/hiseq_2500_1500.ilmn Publication Links: PMID: 25335909 | Gilsbach R., et al. (2014): http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25335909 Publication Research Reviews: Cardiology Research Review http://www.illumina.com/science/publications/publications-review.html The Science Mondays (SciMon) series is brought to you by Illumina http://www.illumina.com/ Illumina hosts Swati Kadam, Ph.D., Scientific Liaison, Scientific Affairs and Jacques Retief, Associate Director Scientific Affairs deliver 5 minutes of scientific enlightenment on the latest discoveries.