Polymorphic variation as a driver of differential neuropeptide gene expression

The regulation of neuropeptide gene expression and their receptors in a tissue specific and stimulus inducible manner will determine in part behaviour and physiology. This can be a dynamic process resulting from short term changes in response to the environment or long term modulation imposed by epigenetically determined mechanisms established during life experiences. The latter underpins what is termed ‘nature and nurture, or ‘gene × environment interactions’. Dynamic gene expression of neuropeptides or their receptors is a key component of signalling in the CNS and their inappropriate regulation is therefore a predicted target underpinning psychiatric disorders and neuropathological processes. Finding the regulatory domains within our genome which have the potential to direct gene expression is a difficult challenge as 98% of our genome is non-coding and, with the exception of proximal promoter regions, such elements can be quite distant from the gene that they regulate. This review will deal with how we can find such domains by addressing both the most conserved non-exonic regions in the genome using comparative genomics and the most recent or constantly evolving DNA such as repetitive DNA or retrotransposons. We shall also explore how polymorphic changes in such domains can be associated with CNS disorders by altering the appropriate gene expression patterns which maintain normal physiology.     

DNA 甲基化与支气管哮喘

支气管哮喘是一种复杂的遗传性疾病,受环境因素影响。表观遗传学作为连接遗传易感因素及环境因素的桥梁,在支气管哮喘发病机制中的作用越来越受到人们的重视。DNA 甲基化作为最为常见的表观遗传修饰形式,可受环境及饮食因素的影响,从而对 CD4＋T 细胞的分化产生影响,促进哮喘的发生。     

姜黄素干预恶性肿瘤表观遗传学研究进展

姜黄素已被证明是一种抗肿瘤药物,它除了对目的蛋白的直接调控外,也可以通过改变表观遗传学作用于目的基因。本文着重对姜黄素所致的DNA去甲基化、组蛋白去乙酰化和miRNA的调节现象以及这些调节对肿瘤的生长影响进行阐述。     

Epigenetic changes associated with inflammation in breast cancer patients treated with chemotherapy

Inflammation has been associated with fatigue during and after various types of breast cancer treatments. We examined whether prior chemotherapy was associated with DNA methylation patterns that could explain persisting inflammation and/or fatigue in women treated for breast cancer. Prior to breast radiation therapy, DNA was extracted from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of 61 Stage 0-IIIA breast cancer patients who had received partial mastectomy with or without chemotherapy. DNA methylation was assessed at >485,000 CpG sites across the genome along with fatigue and plasma inflammatory markers previously associated with fatigue. Compared to non-chemotherapy-treated, women who had received chemotherapy exhibited significantly decreased methylation at eight CpG sites (p < 1.03 × 10⁻⁷) including four in exon 11 of transmembrane protein 49 (TMEM49), which demonstrated the largest decreases in methylation. Lower methylation at each identified CpG site was associated with increased plasma soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 (sTNFR2) and interleukin (IL)-6 and mediated the relationship between chemotherapy and increases in these inflammatory biomarkers adjusting for multiple clinical and treatment characteristics. sTNFR2, but not CpG methylation status, was correlated with fatigue. Six months after breast radiation therapy, DNA methylation, inflammatory biomarkers and fatigue assessments were repeated in a subset of subjects (N = 39). Reduced methylation in 4 of the 8 identified CpG sites was still observed in chemotherapy versus non-chemotherapy-treated patients, albeit with some decay indicating the dynamic and potentially reversible nature of the changes. Reduced methylation in these 4 CpG sites also continued to correlate with either increased sTNFR2 or IL-6, but not fatigue. In conclusion, prior chemotherapy treatment was associated with decreased methylation of CpG sites in DNA from PBMCs of breast cancer patients, which correlated with increased inflammatory markers prior to and 6 months after radiation therapy. Persisting epigenetic changes secondary to chemotherapy may be one factor that contributes to inflammation and its consequences including cancer-related fatigue in vulnerable breast cancer patients.     

Differential effects of binge methamphetamine injections on the mRNA expression of histone deacetylases (HDACs) in the rat striatum

Methamphetamine use disorder is characterized by recurrent binge episodes. Humans addicted to methamphetamine experience various degrees of cognitive deficits and show evidence of neurodegenerative processes in the brain. Binge injections of METH to rodents also cause significant toxic changes in the brain. In addition, this pattern of METH injections can alter gene expression in the dorsal striatum. Gene expression is regulated, in part, by histone deacetylation. We thus tested the possibility that METH toxic doses might cause changes in the mRNA levels of histone deacetylases (HDACs). We found that METH did produce significant decreases in the mRNA expression of HDAC8, which is a class I HDAC. METH also decreased expression of HDAC6, HDAC9, and HDAC10 that are class II HDACs. The expression of the class IV HDAC, HDAC11, was also suppressed by METH. The expression of Sirt2, Sirt5, and Sirt6 that are members of class III HDACs was also downregulated by METH injections. Our findings implicate changes in HDAC expression may be an early indicator of impending METH-induced neurotoxicity in the striatum. This idea is consistent with the accumulated evidence that some HDACs are involved in neurodegenerative processes in the brain.     

Cross-region reduction in 5-hydroxymethylcytosine in Alzheimer's disease brain

Epigenetic processes play a key role in the central nervous system and altered levels of 5-methylcytosine have been associated with a number of neurologic phenotypes, including Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recently, 3 additional cytosine modifications have been identified (5-hydroxymethylcytosine, 5-formylcytosine, and 5-carboxylcytosine), which are thought to be intermediate steps in the demethylation of 5-methylcytosine to unmodified cytosine. Little is known about the frequency of these modifications in the human brain during health or disease. In this study, we used immunofluorescence to confirm the presence of each modification in human brain and investigate their cross-tissue abundance in AD patients and elderly control samples. We identify a significant AD-associated decrease in global 5-hydroxymethylcytosine in entorhinal cortex and cerebellum, and differences in 5-formylcytosine levels between brain regions. Our study further implicates a role for epigenetic alterations in AD.     

Approaches for drawing causal inferences from epidemiological birth cohorts: A review

Large-scale population-based birth cohorts, which recruit women during pregnancy or at birth and follow up their offspring through infancy and into childhood and adolescence, provide the opportunity to monitor and model early life exposures in relation to developmental characteristics and later life outcomes. However, due to confounding and other limitations, identification of causal risk factors has proved challenging and published findings are often not reproducible. A suite of methods has been developed in recent years to minimise problems afflicting observational epidemiology, to strengthen causal inference and to provide greater insights into modifiable intra-uterine and early life risk factors. The aim of this review is to describe these causal inference methods and to suggest how they may be applied in the context of birth cohorts and extended along with the development of birth cohort consortia and expansion of “omic” technologies.     

Aberrantly Methylated cfDNA in Body Fluids as a Promising Diagnostic Tool for Early Detection of Breast Cancer

Breast malignancies are the leading type of cancer among women. Its prevention and early detection, particularly in young women, remains challenging. To this end, cell-free DNA (cfDNA) detected in body fluids demonstrates great potential for early detection of tissue transformation and altered molecular setup, such as epigenetic profiles. Aberrantly methylated cfDNA in body fluids could therefore serve as a potential diagnostic and prognostic tool in breast cancer management. Abnormal methylation may lead to both an activation of oncogenes via hypomethylation and an inactivation of tumor suppressor genes by hypermethylation. We update the state of the art in the area of aberrant cfDNA methylation analyses as a diagnostic and prognostic tool in breast cancer, report on the main technological challenges, and provide an outlook for advancing the overall management of breast malignancies based on cfDNA as a target for diagnosis and tailored therapies.     

母胎间差异甲基化片段在无创性产前诊断中的应用价值

目的探讨HLCS、RASSF1A片段在母胎间甲基化状态的差异并评估其在无创性产前诊断中的应用价值。方法收集388例孕妇血浆,其中126例同时收集外周血细胞及胎盘（或绒毛）组织,采用甲基化敏感性限制性酶切联合荧光定量PCR（MSRE＋PCR）技术,检测母胎间HLCS基因、RASSF1A基因甲基化状态的差异,分析其影响因素,并根据孕妇血浆中胎源性HLCS/RASSF1A浓度比值判断胎儿21号染色体数目。结果研究证实HLCS及RASSF1A在胎盘或绒毛组织中均呈高甲基化状态,而在母体外周血细胞呈现低甲基化状态,且这种甲基化差异不受孕妇年龄、孕周、胎儿性别的影响。采用MSRE＋PCR技术对孕妇血浆中HLCS、RASSF1A片段的检出率分别为97.4%和96.9%。计算274例正常妊娠孕妇血浆中胎源性HLCS/RASSF1A比值,确定其95%的参考值范围为0.34～2.02,以此为标准判断102例胎儿21号染色体数目,其中98例二倍体妊娠的准确率为95.9%（94/98）,4例21三体综合征妊娠均获正确诊断。结论高甲基化HLCS、RASSF1A基因可作为孕妇血浆中胎源DNA的标志物,且有望根据孕妇血浆中甲基化HLCS/RASSF1A浓度比值进行21三体综合征的无创性产前诊断。