Epigenome-wide meta-analysis of DNA methylation differences in prefrontal cortex implicates the immune processes in Alzheimer’s disease

Lanyu Zhang, Tiago C. Silva, Juan I. Young, Lissette Gomez, Michael A. Schmidt, Kara L. Hamilton-Nelson, Brian W. Kunkle, Xi Chen, Eden R. Martin and Lily Wang ()
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Lanyu Zhang: University of Miami
Tiago C. Silva: University of Miami
Juan I. Young: University of Miami
Lissette Gomez: University of Miami
Michael A. Schmidt: University of Miami
Kara L. Hamilton-Nelson: University of Miami
Brian W. Kunkle: University of Miami
Xi Chen: University of Miami
Eden R. Martin: University of Miami
Lily Wang: University of Miami

Nature Communications, 2020, vol. 11, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract DNA methylation differences in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) have been reported. Here, we conducted a meta-analysis of more than 1000 prefrontal cortex brain samples to prioritize the most consistent methylation differences in multiple cohorts. Using a uniform analysis pipeline, we identified 3751 CpGs and 119 differentially methylated regions (DMRs) significantly associated with Braak stage. Our analysis identified differentially methylated genes such as MAMSTR, AGAP2, and AZU1. The most significant DMR identified is located on the MAMSTR gene, which encodes a cofactor that stimulates MEF2C. Notably, MEF2C cooperates with another transcription factor, PU.1, a central hub in the AD gene network. Our enrichment analysis highlighted the potential roles of the immune system and polycomb repressive complex 2 in pathological AD. These results may help facilitate future mechanistic and biomarker discovery studies in AD.

Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-19791-w

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