Open AccessAge‐dependent expression of DNMT 1 and DNMT 3B in PBMC s from a large E uropean population enrolled in the MARK ‐ AGE study
Author(s) -
Ciccarone Fabio,
Malavolta Marco,
Calabrese Roberta,
Guastafierro Tiziana,
Bacalini Maria Giulia,
Reale Anna,
Franceschi Claudio,
Capri Miriam,
Hervonen Antti,
Hurme Mikko,
GrubeckLoebenstein Beatrix,
Koller Bernhard,
Bernhardt Jürgen,
Schӧn Christiane,
Slagboom P. Eline,
Toussaint Olivier,
Sikora Ewa,
Gonos Efstathios S.,
Breusing Nicolle,
Grune Tilman,
Jansen Eugène,
Dollé Martijn,
MorenoVillanueva María,
Sindlinger Thilo,
Bürkle Alexander,
Zampieri Michele,
Caiafa Paola
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
aging cell
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 140
eISSN - 1474-9726
pISSN - 1474-9718
DOI - 10.1111/acel.12485
Subject(s) - dnmt3b , methyltransferase , biology , dna methylation , context (archaeology) , dnmt1 , population , epigenetics , dna methyltransferase , demography , genetics , methylation , gene expression , gene , paleontology , sociology
Summary Aging is associated with alterations in the content and patterns of DNA methylation virtually throughout the entire human lifespan. Reasons for these variations are not well understood. However, several lines of evidence suggest that the epigenetic instability in aging may be traced back to the alteration of the expression of DNA methyltransferases. Here, the association of the expression of DNA methyltransferases DNMT 1 and DNMT 3B with age has been analysed in the context of the MARK ‐ AGE study, a large‐scale cross‐sectional study of the European general population. Using peripheral blood mononuclear cells, we assessed the variation of DNMT 1 and DNMT 3B gene expression in more than two thousand age‐stratified women and men (35–75 years) recruited across eight European countries. Significant age‐related changes were detected for both transcripts. The level of DNMT 1 gradually dropped with aging but this was only observed up to the age of 64 years. By contrast, the expression of DNMT 3B decreased linearly with increasing age and this association was particularly evident in females. We next attempted to trace the age‐related changes of both transcripts to the influence of different variables that have an impact on changes of their expression in the population, including demographics, dietary and health habits, and clinical parameters. Our results indicate that age affects the expression of DNMT 1 and DNMT 3B as an almost independent variable in respect of all other variables evaluated.