Lei Chen1,2, Qianqian Shen1,2, Shunliang Xu3, Hongzhuan Yu4, Shengjie Pei1,2, Yangting Zhang1,2, Xin He1,2, QiuZhen Wang1,2, Duo Li1,2. 1. Institute of Nutrition & Health, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China. 2. School of Public health, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China. 3. Department of Neurology, The Second Hospital, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, China. 4. Weifang Traditional Chinese Hospital, Weifang, China.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: 5-Hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) is an epigenetic DNA modification that is highly abundant in central nervous system. It has been reported that DNA 5hmC dysregulation play a critical role in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. Changes in 5hmC signatures can be detected in circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA), which has shown potential as a non-invasive liquid biopsy material. OBJECTIVE: However, the genome-wide profiling of 5hmC in cfDNA and its potential for the diagnosis of AD has not been reported to date. METHODS: We carried out a case-control study and used a genome-wide chemical capture followed by high-throughput sequencing to detect the genome-wide profiles of 5hmC in human cfDNA and identified differentially hydroxymethylated regions (DhMRs) in late-onset AD patients and the control. RESULTS: We discovered significant differences of 5hmC enrichment in gene bodies which were linked to multiple AD pathogenesis-associated signaling pathways in AD patients compared with cognitively normal controls, indicating they can be well distinguished from normal controls by DhMRs in cfDNA. Specially, we identified 7 distinct genes (RABEP1, CPNE4, DNAJC15, REEP3, ROR1, CAMK1D, and RBFOX1) with predicting diagnostic potential based on their significant correlations with MMSE and MoCA scores of subjects. CONCLUSION: The present results suggest that 5hmC markers derived from plasma cfDNA can served as an effective, minimally invasive biomarkers for clinical auxiliary diagnosis of late-onset AD.
BACKGROUND: 5-Hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) is an epigenetic DNA modification that is highly abundant in central nervous system. It has been reported that DNA 5hmC dysregulation play a critical role in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. Changes in 5hmC signatures can be detected in circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA), which has shown potential as a non-invasive liquid biopsy material. OBJECTIVE: However, the genome-wide profiling of 5hmC in cfDNA and its potential for the diagnosis of AD has not been reported to date. METHODS: We carried out a case-control study and used a genome-wide chemical capture followed by high-throughput sequencing to detect the genome-wide profiles of 5hmC in human cfDNA and identified differentially hydroxymethylated regions (DhMRs) in late-onset AD patients and the control. RESULTS: We discovered significant differences of 5hmC enrichment in gene bodies which were linked to multiple AD pathogenesis-associated signaling pathways in AD patients compared with cognitively normal controls, indicating they can be well distinguished from normal controls by DhMRs in cfDNA. Specially, we identified 7 distinct genes (RABEP1, CPNE4, DNAJC15, REEP3, ROR1, CAMK1D, and RBFOX1) with predicting diagnostic potential based on their significant correlations with MMSE and MoCA scores of subjects. CONCLUSION: The present results suggest that 5hmC markers derived from plasma cfDNA can served as an effective, minimally invasive biomarkers for clinical auxiliary diagnosis of late-onset AD.
Entities:
Keywords:
5-hydroxymethylcytosine; Alzheimer’s disease; biomarker; cell-free DNA