Increased DNA methylation variability in rheumatoid arthritis-discordant monozygotic twins.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Rheumatoid arthritis is a common autoimmune disorder influenced by both genetic and environmental factors. Epigenome-wide association studies can identify environmentally mediated epigenetic changes such as altered DNA methylation, which may also be influenced by genetic factors. To investigate possible contributions of DNA methylation to the aetiology of rheumatoid arthritis with minimum confounding genetic heterogeneity, we investigated genome-wide DNA methylation in disease-discordant monozygotic twin pairs.

Methods

Genome-wide DNA methylation was assessed in 79 monozygotic twin pairs discordant for rheumatoid arthritis using the HumanMethylation450 BeadChip array (Illumina). Discordant twins were tested for both differential DNA methylation and methylation var

SUBMITTER: Webster AP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6122744 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature