A methylation clock model of mild SARS-CoV-2 infection provides insight into immune dysregulation.

ABSTRACT: DNA methylation comprises a cumulative record of lifetime exposures superimposed on genetically determined markers. Little is known about methylation dynamics in humans following an acute perturbation, such as infection. We characterized the temporal trajectory of blood epigenetic remodeling in 133 participants in a prospective study of young adults before, during, and after asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection. The differential methylation caused by asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic infections was indistinguishable. While differential gene expression largely returned to baseline levels after the virus became undetectable, some differentially methylated sites persisted for months of follow-up, with a pattern resembling autoimmune or inflammatory disease. We leveraged t

SUBMITTER: Mao W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10167476 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature