RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Imprinting disorders are rare diseases resulting from altered expression of imprinted genes, which exhibit parent-of-origin-specific expression patterns regulated through differential DNA methylation. A subgroup of patients with imprinting disorders have DNA methylation changes at multiple imprinted loci, a condition referred to as multi-locus imprinting disturbance (MLID). MLID is recognised in most but not all imprinting disorders and is also found in individuals with atypical clinical features; the presence of MLID often alters the management or prognosis of the affected person. Some cases of MLID are caused by trans-acting genetic variants, frequently not in the patients but their mothers, which have counselling implications. There is currently no consensus on the definition of MLID, clinical indications prompting testing, molecular procedures and methods for epigenetic and genetic diagnosis, recommendations for laboratory reporting, considerations for counselling, and implications for prognosis and management. The purpose of this study is thus to cover this unmet need. METHODS: A comprehensive literature search was conducted resulting in identification of more than 100 articles which formed the basis of discussions by two working groups focusing on clinical diagnosis (n = 12 members) and molecular testing (n = 19 members). Following eight months of preparations and regular online discussions, the experts from 11 countries compiled the preliminary documentation and determined the questions to be addressed during a face-to-face meeting which was held with the attendance of the experts together with four representatives of patient advocacy organisations. RESULTS: In light of available evidence and expert consensus, we formulated 16 propositions and 8 recommendations as interim guidance for the clinical and molecular diagnosis of MLID. CONCLUSIONS: MLID is a molecular designation, and for patients with MLID and atypical phenotypes, we propose the alternative term multi-locus imprinting syndrome. Due to the intrinsic variability of MLID, the guidelines underscore the importance of involving experts from various fields to ensure a confident approach to diagnosis, counselling, and care. The authors advocate for global, collaborative efforts in both basic and translational research to tackle numerous crucial questions that currently lack answers, and suggest reconvening within the next 3-5 years to evaluate the research advancements and update this guidance as needed.
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Metilación de ADN , Impresión Genómica , Humanos , Impresión Genómica/genética , Metilación de ADN/genética , Pruebas Genéticas/métodosRESUMEN
The amount of Insulin Growth Factor 2 (IGF2) controls the rate of embryonal and postnatal growth. The IGF2 and adjacent H19 are the imprinted genes of the telomeric cluster in the 11p15 chromosomal region regulated by differentially methylated regions (DMRs) or imprinting centers (ICs): H19/IGF2:IG-DMR (IC1). Dysregulation due to IC1 Loss-of-Methylation (LoM) or Gain-of-Methyaltion (GoM) causes Silver-Russell syndrome (SRS) or Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome (BWS) disorders associated with growth retardation or overgrowth, respectively. Specific features define each of the two syndromes, but isolated asymmetry is a common cardinal feature, which is considered sufficient for a diagnosis in the BWS spectrum. Here, we report the case of a girl with right body asymmetry, which suggested BWS spectrum. Later, BWS/SRS molecular analysis identified IC1_LoM revealing the discrepant diagnosis of SRS. A clinical re-evaluation identified a relative macrocephaly and previously unidentified growth rate at lower limits of normal at birth, feeding difficulties, and asymmetry. Interestingly, and never previously described in IC1_LoM SRS patients, since the age of 16, she has developed hand-writer's cramps, depression, and bipolar disorder. Trio-WES identified a VPS16 heterozygous variant [NM_022575.4:c.2185C>G:p.Leu729Val] inherited from her healthy mother. VPS16 is involved in the endolysosomal system, and its dysregulation is linked to autosomal dominant dystonia with incomplete penetrance and variable expressivity. IGF2 involvement in the lysosomal pathway led us to speculate that the neurological phenotype of the proband might be triggered by the concurrent IGF2 deficit and VPS16 alteration.
RESUMEN
Imprinting Disorders (ImpDis) are a group of congenital syndromes associated with up to four different types of molecular disturbances affecting the monoallelic and parent-of-origin specific expression of genomically imprinted genes. Though each ImpDis is characterized by aberrations at a distinct genetic site and a specific set of postnatal clinical signs, there is a broad overlap between several of them. In particular, the prenatal features of ImpDis are non-specific. Therefore, the decision on the appropriate molecular testing strategy is difficult. A further molecular characteristic of ImpDis is (epi)genetic mosaicism, which makes prenatal testing for ImpDis challenging. Accordingly, sampling and diagnostic workup has to consider the methodological limitations. Furthermore, the prediction of the clinical outcome of a pregnancy can be difficult. False-negative results can occur, and therefore fetal imaging should be the diagnostic tool on which decisions on the management of the pregnancy should be based. In summary, the decision for molecular prenatal testing for ImpDis should be based on close exchanges between clinicians, geneticists, and the families before the initiation of the test. These discussions should weigh the chances and challenges of the prenatal test, with focus on the need of the family.
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Impresión Genómica , Diagnóstico Prenatal , Embarazo , Femenino , Humanos , Pruebas Genéticas/métodosRESUMEN
Different scoring systems for the clinical diagnosis of the Beckwith-Wiedemann spectrum (BWSp) have been developed over time, the most recent being the international consensus score. Here we try to validate and provide data on the performance metrics of these scoring systems of the 2018 international consensus and the previous ones, relating them to BWSp features, molecular tests, and the probability of cancer development in a cohort of 831 patients. The consensus scoring system had the best performance (sensitivity 0.85 and specificity 0.43). In our cohort, the diagnostic yield of tests on blood-extracted DNA was low in patients with a low consensus score (~20% with a score = 2), and the score did not correlate with cancer development. We observed hepatoblastoma (HB) in 4.3% of patients with UPD(11)pat and Wilms tumor in 1.9% of patients with isolated lateralized overgrowth (ILO). We validated the efficacy of the currently used consensus score for BWSp clinical diagnosis. Based on our observation, a first-tier analysis of tissue-extracted DNA in patients with <4 points may be considered. We discourage the use of the consensus score value as an indicator of the probability of cancer development. Moreover, we suggest considering cancer screening for negative patients with ILO (risk ~2%) and HB screening for patients with UPD(11)pat (risk ~4%).
RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Imprinting disorders, which affect growth, development, metabolism and neoplasia risk, are caused by genetic or epigenetic changes to genes that are expressed from only one parental allele. Disease may result from changes in coding sequences, copy number changes, uniparental disomy or imprinting defects. Some imprinting disorders are clinically heterogeneous, some are associated with more than one imprinted locus, and some patients have alterations affecting multiple loci. Most imprinting disorders are diagnosed by stepwise analysis of gene dosage and methylation of single loci, but some laboratories assay a panel of loci associated with different imprinting disorders. We looked into the experience of several laboratories using single-locus and/or multi-locus diagnostic testing to explore how different testing strategies affect diagnostic outcomes and whether multi-locus testing has the potential to increase the diagnostic efficiency or reveal unforeseen diagnoses. RESULTS: We collected data from 11 laboratories in seven countries, involving 16,364 individuals and eight imprinting disorders. Among the 4721 individuals tested for the growth restriction disorder Silver-Russell syndrome, 731 had changes on chromosomes 7 and 11 classically associated with the disorder, but 115 had unexpected diagnoses that involved atypical molecular changes, imprinted loci on chromosomes other than 7 or 11 or multi-locus imprinting disorder. In a similar way, the molecular changes detected in Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome and other imprinting disorders depended on the testing strategies employed by the different laboratories. CONCLUSIONS: Based on our findings, we discuss how multi-locus testing might optimise diagnosis for patients with classical and less familiar clinical imprinting disorders. Additionally, our compiled data reflect the daily life experiences of diagnostic laboratories, with a lower diagnostic yield than in clinically well-characterised cohorts, and illustrate the need for systematising clinical and molecular data.
Asunto(s)
Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann , Síndrome de Silver-Russell , Humanos , Impresión Genómica , Metilación de ADN , Síndrome de Silver-Russell/diagnóstico , Síndrome de Silver-Russell/genética , Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann/diagnóstico , Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann/genética , Trastornos del Crecimiento/genética , Técnicas y Procedimientos DiagnósticosRESUMEN
The prevalence of Beckwith-Wiedemann spectrum (BWSp) is tenfold increased in children conceived through assisted reproductive techniques (ART). More than 90% of ART-BWSp patients reported so far display imprinting center 2 loss-of-methylations (IC2-LoM), versus 50% of naturally conceived BWSp patients. We describe a cohort of 74 ART-BWSp patients comparing their features with a cohort of naturally conceived BWSp patients, with the ART-BWSp patients previously described in literature, and with the general population of children born from ART. We found that the distribution of UPD(11)pat was not significantly different in ART and naturally conceived patients. We observed 68.9% of IC2-LoM and 16.2% of mosaic UPD(11)pat in our ART cohort, that strongly differ from the figure reported in other cohorts so far. Since UPD(11)pat likely results from post-fertilization recombination events, our findings allows to hypothesize that more complex molecular mechanisms, besides methylation disturbances, may underlie BWSp increased risk in ART pregnancies. Moreover, comparing the clinical features of ART and non-ART BWSp patients, we found that ART-BWSp patients might have a milder phenotype. Finally, our data show a progressive increase in the prevalence of BWSp over time, paralleling that of ART usage in the last decades.
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Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann , Impresión Genómica , Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann/epidemiología , Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann/genética , Metilación de ADN/genética , Femenino , Fertilización , Impresión Genómica/genética , Humanos , Embarazo , Técnicas Reproductivas Asistidas/efectos adversosRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Imprinting disorders are a group of congenital diseases which are characterized by molecular alterations affecting differentially methylated regions (DMRs). To date, at least twelve imprinting disorders have been defined with overlapping but variable clinical features including growth and metabolic disturbances, cognitive dysfunction, abdominal wall defects and asymmetry. In general, a single specific DMR is affected in an individual with a given imprinting disorder, but there are a growing number of reports on individuals with so-called multilocus imprinting disturbances (MLID), where aberrant imprinting marks (most commonly loss of methylation) occur at multiple DMRs. However, as the literature is fragmented, we reviewed the molecular and clinical data of 55 previously reported or newly identified MLID families with putative pathogenic variants in maternal effect genes (NLRP2, NLRP5, NLRP7, KHDC3L, OOEP, PADI6) and in other candidate genes (ZFP57, ARID4A, ZAR1, UHRF1, ZNF445). RESULTS: In 55 families, a total of 68 different candidate pathogenic variants were identified (7 in NLRP2, 16 in NLRP5, 7 in NLRP7, 17 in PADI6, 15 in ZFP57, and a single variant in each of the genes ARID4A, ZAR1, OOEP, UHRF1, KHDC3L and ZNF445). Clinical diagnoses of affected offspring included Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome spectrum, Silver-Russell syndrome spectrum, transient neonatal diabetes mellitus, or they were suspected for an imprinting disorder (undiagnosed). Some families had recurrent pregnancy loss. CONCLUSIONS: Genomic maternal effect and foetal variants causing MLID allow insights into the mechanisms behind the imprinting cycle of life, and the spatial and temporal function of the different factors involved in oocyte maturation and early development. Further basic research together with identification of new MLID families will enable a better understanding of the link between the different reproductive issues such as recurrent miscarriages and preeclampsia in maternal effect variant carriers/families and aneuploidy and the MLID observed in the offsprings. The current knowledge can already be employed in reproductive and genetic counselling in specific situations.
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Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann , Síndrome de Silver-Russell , Proteínas Adaptadoras Transductoras de Señales/genética , Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann/genética , Proteínas Potenciadoras de Unión a CCAAT/genética , Metilación de ADN , Femenino , Impresión Genómica , Humanos , Herencia Materna , Embarazo , Síndrome de Silver-Russell/diagnóstico , Síndrome de Silver-Russell/genética , Ubiquitina-Proteína Ligasas/genéticaRESUMEN
Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome (BWS, OMIM # 130650) is an imprinting disorder, associated with overgrowth and increased risk of embryonal tumors. Patients carrying hypomethylation in the KCNQ1OT1:TSS DMR (11p15.5) show MLID (Multilocus Imprinting Disturbance) upon epimutations at other imprinted regions. Few cases of BWS MLID's mothers with biallelic pathogenetic variants in maternal effect genes, mainly components of the subcortical maternal complex, are reported. We describe two families, one with a history of conception difficulties with a novel homozygous nonsense NLRP2 variant and another experiencing 8 miscarriages with a compound heterozygous PADI6 variant.
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Aborto Espontáneo , Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann , Infertilidad , Aborto Espontáneo/genética , Síndrome de Beckwith-Wiedemann/genética , Metilación de ADN , Femenino , Impresión Genómica , Células Germinativas , Humanos , Infertilidad/genética , EmbarazoRESUMEN
Silver Russell Syndrome (SRS, MIM #180860) is a rare growth retardation disorder in which clinical diagnosis is based on six features: pre- and postnatal growth failure, relative macrocephaly, prominent forehead, body asymmetry, and feeding difficulties (Netchine-Harbison clinical scoring system (NH-CSS)). The molecular mechanisms consist in (epi)genetic deregulations at multiple loci: the loss of methylation (LOM) at the paternal H19/IGF2:IG-DMR (chr11p15.5) (50%) and the maternal uniparental disomy of chromosome 7 (UPD(7)mat) (10%) are the most frequent causes. Thus far, about 40% of SRS remains undiagnosed, pointing to the need to define the rare mechanisms in such a consistent fraction of unsolved patients. Within a cohort of 176 SRS with an NH-CSS ≥ 3, a molecular diagnosis was disclosed in about 45%. Among the remaining patients, we identified in 3 probands (1.7%) with UPD(20)mat (Mulchandani-Bhoj-Conlin syndrome, OMIM #617352), a molecular mechanism deregulating the GNAS locus and described in 21 cases, characterized by severe feeding difficulties associated with failure to thrive, preterm birth, and intrauterine/postnatal growth retardation. Our patients share prominent forehead, feeding difficulties, postnatal growth delay, and advanced maternal age. Their clinical assessment and molecular diagnostic flowchart contribute to better define the characteristics of this rare imprinting disorder and to rank UPD(20)mat as the fourth most common pathogenic molecular defect causative of SRS.
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Cromograninas/genética , Cromosomas Humanos Par 20/genética , Subunidades alfa de la Proteína de Unión al GTP Gs/genética , Síndrome de Silver-Russell/diagnóstico , Disomía Uniparental/genética , Adulto , Niño , Diagnóstico Diferencial , Femenino , Impresión Genómica , Humanos , Lactante , Masculino , Edad Materna , Herencia Materna , Patología Molecular , Linaje , Fenotipo , Síndrome de Silver-Russell/genéticaRESUMEN
Aim: Impaired methylation of the mitochondrial DNA and particularly in the regulatory displacement loop (D-loop) region, is increasingly observed in patients with neurodegenerative disorders. The present study aims to investigate if common polymorphisms of genes required for one-carbon metabolism (MTHFR, MTRR, MTR and RFC-1) and DNA methylation reactions (DNMT1, DNMT3A and DNMT3B) influence D-loop methylation levels. Materials & methods: D-loop methylation data were available from 133 late-onset Alzheimer's disease patients and 130 matched controls. Genotyping was performed with PCR-RFLP or high resolution melting techniques. Results: Both MTRR 66A > G and DNMT3A -448A > G polymorphisms were significantly associated with D-loop methylation levels. Conclusion: This exploratory study suggests that MTRR and DNMT3A polymorphisms influence mitochondrial DNA methylation; further research is required to better address this issue.
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Enfermedad de Alzheimer/genética , Metilación de ADN , ADN Mitocondrial , Metionina/biosíntesis , 5-Metiltetrahidrofolato-Homocisteína S-Metiltransferasa , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Estudios de Casos y Controles , ADN (Citosina-5-)-Metiltransferasa 1 , ADN (Citosina-5-)-Metiltransferasas , ADN Metiltransferasa 3A , Femenino , Ferredoxina-NADP Reductasa , Genotipo , Humanos , Masculino , Metilenotetrahidrofolato Reductasa (NADPH2) , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple , Proteína de Replicación C , ADN Metiltransferasa 3BRESUMEN
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is an adult-onset progressive neurodegenerative disease due to motor neuron loss variably associated with frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Next generation sequencing technology revealed an increasing number of rare and novel genetic variants and interpretation of their pathogenicity represents a major challange in the diagnosis of ALS. We selected 213 consecutive patients with sporadic or familial (16%) ALS, tested negative for SOD1, FUS, TARDBP, and C9orf72 mutations. To reveal rare forms of genetic ALS, we performed a comprehensive multi-gene panel screening including 46 genes associated with ALS, hereditary motor neuronopathies, spastic paraplegia, and FTD. Our study allowed the identification of pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in 4.2% of patients. The genes with the highest percentage of pathogenic variants were OPTN (1%), VCP (1%) SQSTM1(1%), SETX (0.4%), FIG4 (0.4%), and GARS1 (0.4%) genes. We also found 49 novel or rare gene variants of unknown significance in 30 patients (14%), 44 unlikely pathogenic variants (39%), and 48 variants in ALS susceptibility genes. The results of our study suggest the screening of OPTN, VCP, and SQSTM1 genes in routine diagnostic investigations for both sporadic and familial cases, and confirm the importance of diagnosis and couselling for patients and their relative family members.
RESUMEN
DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) is responsible for the maintenance of DNA methylation patterns during cell division. Several human diseases are characterized by impaired DNMT1 gene methylation, but less is known about the factors that regulate DNMT1 promoter methylation levels. Dietary folates and related B-vitamins are essential micronutrients for DNA methylation processes, and we performed the present study to investigate the contribution of circulating folate, vitamin B12, homocysteine, and common polymorphisms in folate pathway genes to the DNMT1 gene methylation levels. We investigated DNMT1 gene methylation levels in peripheral blood DNA samples from 215 healthy individuals. All the DNA samples were genotyped for MTHFR 677C > T (rs1801133) and 1298A > C (rs1801131), MTRR 66A > G (rs1801394), MTR 2756A > G (rs1805087), SLC19A1 (RFC1) 80G > A (rs1051266), TYMS 28-bp tandem repeats (rs34743033) and 1494 6-bp insertion/deletion (indel) (rs34489327), DNMT3A -448A > G (rs1550117), and DNMT3B -149C > T (rs2424913) polymorphisms. Circulating homocysteine, folate, and vitamin B12 levels were available from 158 of the recruited individuals. We observed an inverse correlation between plasma homocysteine and DNMT1 methylation levels. Furthermore, both MTR rs1805087 and TYMS rs34743033 polymorphisms showed a statistically significant effect on DNMT1 methylation levels. The present study revealed several correlations between the folate metabolic pathway and DNMT1 promoter methylation that could be of relevance for those disorders characterized by altered DNA methylation.
RESUMEN
Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) is a pivotal enzyme in the one-carbon metabolism, a metabolic pathway required for DNA synthesis and methylation reactions. MTHFR hypermethylation, resulting in reduced gene expression, can contribute to several human disorders, but little is still known about the factors that regulate MTHFR methylation levels. We performed the present study to investigate if common polymorphisms in one-carbon metabolism genes contribute to MTHFR methylation levels. MTHFR methylation was assessed in peripheral blood DNA samples from 206 healthy subjects with methylation-sensitive high-resolution melting (MS-HRM); genotyping was performed for MTHFR 677C>T (rs1801133) and 1298A>C (rs1801131), MTRR 66A>G (rs1801394), MTR 2756A>G (rs1805087), SLC19A1 (RFC1) 80G>A (rs1051266), TYMS 28-bp tandem repeats (rs34743033) and 1494 6-bp ins/del (rs34489327), DNMT3A -448A>G (rs1550117), and DNMT3B -149C>T (rs2424913) polymorphisms. We observed a statistically significant effect of the DNMT3B -149C>T polymorphism on mean MTHFR methylation levels, and particularly CT and TT carriers showed increased methylation levels than CC carriers. The present study revealed an association between a functional polymorphism of DNMT3B and MTHFR methylation levels that could be of relevance in those disorders, such as inborn defects, metabolic disorders and cancer, that have been linked to impaired DNA methylation.
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ADN (Citosina-5-)-Metiltransferasas/genética , Metilación de ADN , Epigénesis Genética , Redes y Vías Metabólicas/genética , Metilenotetrahidrofolato Reductasa (NADPH2)/genética , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple , 5-Metiltetrahidrofolato-Homocisteína S-Metiltransferasa/genética , 5-Metiltetrahidrofolato-Homocisteína S-Metiltransferasa/metabolismo , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , ADN (Citosina-5-)-Metiltransferasas/metabolismo , ADN Metiltransferasa 3A , Femenino , Ferredoxina-NADP Reductasa/genética , Ferredoxina-NADP Reductasa/metabolismo , Ácido Fólico/metabolismo , Genotipo , Voluntarios Sanos , Humanos , Masculino , Metionina/metabolismo , Metilenotetrahidrofolato Reductasa (NADPH2)/metabolismo , Persona de Mediana Edad , Proteína Portadora de Folato Reducido/genética , Proteína Portadora de Folato Reducido/metabolismo , Timidilato Sintasa/genética , Timidilato Sintasa/metabolismo , ADN Metiltransferasa 3BRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: A functional polymorphism in the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene, namely C677T (rs1801133), results in increased Hcy levels and has been associated with risk of late-onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD). Many investigators reported association between rs1801133 and LOAD risk in Asian populations and in carriers of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) É4 allele, but recent meta-analyses suggest a contribution also in other populations, including Caucasians and/or northern Africans. OBJECTIVE: To further address this issue, we performed a relatively large case-control study, including 581 LOAD patients and 468 matched controls of Italian origin. APOE data were available for a subgroup of almost 600 subjects. METHODS: Genotyping for rs1801133 was performed with PCR-RFLP techniques. RESULTS: In the total population, the MTHFR 677T allele (ORâ=â1.20; 95% CIâ=â1.01-1.43) and carriers of the MTHFR 677T allele (CT+TT versus CC: ORâ=â1.34; 95% CIâ=â1.03-1.73) resulted in increased LOAD risk. Similarly, in APOEÉ4 carriers, we observed an increased frequency of MTHFR 677CT carriers (CT versus CC: ORâ=â2.82; 95% CIâ=â1.25-6.32). Very interestingly, also in non-APOEÉ4 carriers, both MTHFR 677T allele (ORâ=â1.38; 95% CIâ=â1.03-1.85) and MTHFR 677TT genotype (ORâ=â2.08; 95% CIâ=â1.11-3.90) were associated with LOAD. All these associations survived after corrections for age, gender, and multiple testing. CONCLUSIONS: The present results suggest that the MTHFR C677T polymorphism is likely a LOAD risk factor in our cohort, either in APOEÉ4 or in non-APOEÉ4 carriers.
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Enfermedad de Alzheimer/genética , Predisposición Genética a la Enfermedad , Metilenotetrahidrofolato Reductasa (NADPH2)/genética , Polimorfismo Genético , Edad de Inicio , Anciano , Apolipoproteínas E/genética , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Femenino , Heterocigoto , Humanos , Italia , Masculino , Sexo , Población Blanca/genéticaRESUMEN
There is substantial evidence of impaired DNA repair activities in Alzheimer's disease (AD) neurons and peripheral tissues, inducing some investigators to speculate that this could partially result from promoter hypermethylation of DNA repair genes, resulting in gene silencing in those tissues. In the present study a screening cohort composed by late-onset AD (LOAD) patients and healthy matched controls was evaluated with a commercially available DNA methylation array for the assessment of the methylation levels of a panel of 22 genes involved in major DNA repair pathways in blood DNA. We then applied a cost-effective PCR based methylation-sensitive high-resolution melting (MS-HRM) technique, in order to evaluate the promoter methylation levels of the following DNA repair genes: OGG1, PARP1, MRE11A, BRCA1, MLH1, and MGMT. The analysis was performed in blood DNA from 56 LOAD patients and 55 matched controls, including the samples previously assessed with the DNA methylation array as validating samples. Both approaches revealed that all the investigated genes were largely hypomethylated in LOAD and control blood DNA, and no difference between groups was observed. Collectively, present data do not support an increased promoter methylation of some of the major DNA repair genes in blood DNA of AD patients.
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Enfermedad de Alzheimer/sangre , Enfermedad de Alzheimer/genética , Metilación de ADN/genética , Reparación del ADN/genética , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Análisis de Secuencia por Matrices de OligonucleótidosRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: There is increasing interest in DNA methylation studies in Alzheimer's disease (AD), but little is still known concerning the relationship between gene-promoter methylation and circulating biomarkers of one-carbon metabolism in patients. OBJECTIVE: To detect the connections among circulating folate, homocysteine (hcy) and vitamin B12 levels and promoter methylation levels of PSEN1, BACE1, DNMT1, DNMT3A, DNMT3B, and MTHFR genes in blood DNA. METHODS: We applied a data mining system called Auto Contractive Map to an existing database of 100 AD and 100 control individuals. RESULTS: Low vitamin B12 was linked to the AD condition, to low folates, and to high hcy. Low PSEN1 methylation was linked to low folate levels as well as to low promoter methylation of BACE1 and DNMTs genes. Low hcy was linked to controls, to high folates and vitamin B12, as well as to high methylation levels of most of the studied genes. CONCLUSIONS: The present pilot study suggests that promoter methylation levels of the studied genes are linked to circulating levels of folates, hcy, and vitamin B12.
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Enfermedad de Alzheimer/sangre , Enfermedad de Alzheimer/genética , Metilación de ADN , Regiones Promotoras Genéticas , Factores de Edad , Anciano , Secretasas de la Proteína Precursora del Amiloide/genética , Secretasas de la Proteína Precursora del Amiloide/metabolismo , Ácido Aspártico Endopeptidasas/genética , Ácido Aspártico Endopeptidasas/metabolismo , Biomarcadores/sangre , ADN (Citosina-5-)-Metiltransferasas/genética , ADN (Citosina-5-)-Metiltransferasas/metabolismo , Femenino , Ácido Fólico/sangre , Homocisteína/sangre , Humanos , Masculino , Metilenotetrahidrofolato Reductasa (NADPH2)/genética , Metilenotetrahidrofolato Reductasa (NADPH2)/metabolismo , Redes Neurales de la Computación , Presenilina-1/genética , Presenilina-1/metabolismo , Factores Sexuales , Vitamina B 12/sangreRESUMEN
Increasing evidence points to an epigenetic contribution in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis. In this regard, variants and polymorphisms of DNA methyltransferase genes (DNMTs) are being investigated for their contribution to cognitive decline and dementia, but results are still scarce or controversial. In the present study we genotyped 710 Caucasian subjects of Italian descent, including 320 late-onset AD (LOAD) patients, 70 individuals with amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), and 320 matched healthy controls, for the presence of a functional DNMT3A -448A>G (rs1550117) polymorphism, searching for association with disease risk. In addition, we searched for correlation between the studied polymorphism and circulating levels of folate, homocysteine (hcy) and vitamin B12, all involved in DNA methylation reactions and available from 189 LOAD patients and 186 matched controls. Both allele and genotype frequencies of rs1550117 were closely similar between MCI, LOAD and control subjects, and no association with dementia or pre-dementia conditions was observed. Plasma hcy levels were significantly higher (p = 0.04) and serum folate levels significantly lower (p = 0.01) in LOAD than in controls, but no difference in circulating folate, hcy or vitamin B12 levels was seen between carriers and non-carriers of the minor DNMT3A -448A allele. Collectively, present results confirmed previous associations of increased hcy and decreased folate with LOAD risk, but do not support an association between the DNMT3A -448A>G polymorphism and AD in our population.
RESUMEN
Despite that advanced maternal age at conception represents the major risk factor for the birth of a child with Down syndrome (DS), most of DS babies are born from women aging less than 35 years. Studies performed in peripheral lymphocytes of those women revealed several markers of global genome instability, including an increased frequency of micronuclei, shorter telomeres and impaired global DNA methylation. Furthermore, young mothers of DS individuals (MDS) are at increased risk to develop dementia later in life, suggesting that they might be "biologically older" than mothers of euploid babies of similar age. Mutations in folate pathway genes, and particularly in the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) one, have been often associated with maternal risk for a DS birth as well as with risk of dementia in the elderly. Recent studies pointed out that also changes in MTHFR methylation levels can contribute to human disease, but nothing is known about MTHFR methylation in MDS tissues. We investigated MTHFR promoter methylation in DNA extracted from perypheral lymphocytes of 40 MDS and 44 matched control women that coinceived their children before 35 years of age, observing a significantly increased MTHFR promoter methylation in the first group (33.3 ± 8.1% vs. 28.3 ± 5.8%; p=0.001). In addition, the frequency of micronucleated lymphocytes was available from the women included in the study, was higher in MDS than control mothers (16.1 ± 8.6 vs. 10.5 ± 4.3; p=0.0004), and correlated with MTHFR promoter methylation levels (r=0.33; p=0.006). Present data suggest that MTHFR epimutations are likely to contribute to the increased genomic instability observed in cells from MDS, and could play a role in the risk of birth of a child with DS as well as in the onset of age related diseases in those women.
Asunto(s)
Metilación de ADN , Síndrome de Down/genética , Metilenotetrahidrofolato Reductasa (NADPH2)/genética , Adulto , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Síndrome de Down/enzimología , Femenino , Regulación Enzimológica de la Expresión Génica , Estudios de Asociación Genética , Humanos , Persona de Mediana Edad , Factores de Riesgo , Análisis de Secuencia de ADNRESUMEN
We collected blood DNA from 120 late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients and 115 healthy matched controls and analysed the methylation levels of genes involved in amyloid-beta peptide production (PSEN1 and BACE1), in DNA methylation (DNMT1, DNMT3A and DNMT3B), and in one-carbon metabolism (MTHFR), searching for correlation with age and gender, with biomarkers of one-carbon metabolism (plasma homocysteine, and serum folate and vitamin B12 levels), and with disease status (being healthy or having AD). We also evaluated the contribution of the APOE ϵ4 allele, the major late-onset AD genetic risk factor, to the studied gene methylation levels. All the genes showed low mean methylation levels (<5%) in both AD and control DNA, no difference between groups, and no correlation with the studied biomarkers, except for MTHFR that showed methylation levels ranging from 5% to 75%, and correlation with circulating biomarkers of one-carbon metabolism. However, mean MTHFR methylation levels were similar between groups (31.1% in AD and 30.7% in controls, P=0.58). Overall, present data suggest that none of the studied regions is differently methylated in blood DNA between AD and control subjects.
Asunto(s)
Enfermedad de Alzheimer/sangre , Metilación de ADN , ADN/sangre , Regiones no Traducidas 5' , Factores de Edad , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Secretasas de la Proteína Precursora del Amiloide/sangre , Secretasas de la Proteína Precursora del Amiloide/genética , Apolipoproteína E4/sangre , Apolipoproteína E4/genética , Ácido Aspártico Endopeptidasas/sangre , Ácido Aspártico Endopeptidasas/genética , Biomarcadores/sangre , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Islas de CpG , ADN (Citosina-5-)-Metiltransferasa 1 , ADN (Citosina-5-)-Metiltransferasas/sangre , ADN (Citosina-5-)-Metiltransferasas/genética , ADN Metiltransferasa 3A , Femenino , Ácido Fólico/sangre , Homocisteína/sangre , Humanos , Masculino , Metilenotetrahidrofolato Reductasa (NADPH2)/sangre , Metilenotetrahidrofolato Reductasa (NADPH2)/genética , Presenilina-1/sangre , Presenilina-1/genética , Regiones Promotoras Genéticas , Factores Sexuales , Vitamina B 12/sangre , ADN Metiltransferasa 3BRESUMEN
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder and the primary form of dementia in the elderly. Polymorphisms of genes involved in folate metabolism have been frequently suggested as risk factors for sporadic AD. A common c.80G>A polymorphism (rs1051266) in the gene coding for the reduced folate carrier (SLC19A1 gene, commonly known as RFC-1 gene) was investigated as AD risk factor in Asian populations, yielding conflicting results. We screened a Caucasian population of Italian origin composed of 192 sporadic AD patients and 186 healthy matched controls, for the presence of the RFC-1 c.80G>A polymorphism, and searched for correlation with circulating levels of folate, homocysteine, and vitamin B12. No difference in the distribution of allele and genotype frequencies was observed between AD patients and controls. No correlation was observed among the genotypes generated by the RFC-1 c.80G>A polymorphism and circulating levels of folate, homocysteine, and vitamin B12 either in the whole cohort of subjects or after stratification into clinical subtypes. Present results do not support a role for the RFC-1 c.80G>A polymorphism as independent risk factor for sporadic AD in Italian Caucasians.