Epigenome-wide meta-analysis of blood DNA methylation and its association with subcortical volumes: findings from the ENIGMA Epigenetics Working Group

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Tianye Jia - , King's College London (KCL), Fudan University (Author)
  • Congying Chu - , King's College London (KCL) (Author)
  • Yun Liu - , Fudan University (Author)
  • Jenny van Dongen - , Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) (Author)
  • Evangelos Papastergios - , King's College London (KCL) (Author)
  • Nicola J. Armstrong - , Murdoch University (Author)
  • Mark E. Bastin - , University of Edinburgh (Author)
  • Tania Carrillo-Roa - , Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry (Author)
  • Anouk den Braber - , Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) (Author)
  • Mathew Harris - , University of Edinburgh (Author)
  • Rick Jansen - , Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) (Author)
  • Jingyu Liu - , University of New Mexico (Author)
  • Michelle Luciano - , University of Edinburgh (Author)
  • Anil P.S. Ori - , University of California at Los Angeles (Author)
  • Roberto Roiz Santiañez - , Hospital Universitario Marques de Valdecilla, CIBER - Center for Biomedical Research Network (Author)
  • Barbara Ruggeri - , King's College London (KCL) (Author)
  • Daniil Sarkisyan - , Uppsala University (Author)
  • Jean Shin - , University of Toronto (Author)
  • Kim Sungeun - , Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (Author)
  • Diana Tordesillas Gutiérrez - , Hospital Universitario Marques de Valdecilla, Marqués de Valdecilla Research Institute (IDIVAL) (Author)
  • Dennis van’t Ent - , Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) (Author)
  • David Ames - , National Ageing Research Institute, University of Melbourne (Author)
  • Eric Artiges - , INSERM - Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale, DIGITEO Labs, Hospital Group Nord-Essonne (Author)
  • Georgy Bakalkin - , Uppsala University (Author)
  • Tobias Banaschewski - , Heidelberg University  (Author)
  • Arun L.W. Bokde - , Trinity College Dublin (Author)
  • Henry Brodaty - , University of New South Wales (Author)
  • Uli Bromberg - , University of Hamburg (Author)
  • Rachel Brouwer - , Utrecht University (Author)
  • Christian Büchel - , University of Hamburg (Author)
  • Erin Burke Quinlan - , King's College London (KCL) (Author)
  • Wiepke Cahn - , Utrecht University (Author)
  • Greig I. de Zubicaray - , Queensland University of Technology (Author)
  • Stefan Ehrlich - , Division of Psychological and Social Medicine and Developmental Neurosciences (Author)
  • Tomas J. Ekström - , Karolinska Institutet (Author)
  • Herta Flor - , Heidelberg University , University of Mannheim (Author)
  • Juliane H. Fröhner - , Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Neuroimaging Center (Author)
  • Vincent Frouin - , French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) (Author)
  • Hugh Garavan - , University of Vermont (Author)
  • Penny Gowland - , University of Nottingham (Author)
  • Andreas Heinz - , Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (Author)
  • Jacqueline Hoare - , University of Cape Town (Author)
  • Bernd Ittermann - , Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (Author)
  • Neda Jahanshad - , Keck School of Medicine at University of Southern California (Author)
  • Jiyang Jiang - , University of New South Wales (Author)
  • John B. Kwok - , University of Sydney, University of New South Wales (Author)
  • Nicholas G. Martin - , Queensland Institute of Medical Research (Author)
  • Jean Luc Martinot - , INSERM - Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale, DIGITEO Labs, Université Paris Cité (Author)
  • Karen A. Mather - , University of New South Wales, Neuroscience Research Australia (Author)
  • Katie L. McMahon - , Queensland University of Technology (Author)
  • Allan F. McRae - , University of Queensland (Author)
  • Frauke Nees - , Heidelberg University  (Author)
  • Dimitri Papadopoulos Orfanos - , French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) (Author)
  • Tomáš Paus - , Bloorview Research Institute (Author)
  • Luise Poustka - , University of Göttingen (Author)
  • Philipp G. Sämann - , Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry (Author)
  • Peter R. Schofield - , Neuroscience Research Australia, University of New South Wales (Author)
  • Michael N. Smolka - , Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Neuroimaging Center (Author)
  • Dan J. Stein - , University of Cape Town, SAMRC Unit on Risk & Resilience in Mental Disorders (Author)
  • Lachlan T. Strike - , University of Queensland (Author)
  • Jalmar Teeuw - , University of California at Los Angeles, Utrecht University (Author)
  • Anbupalam Thalamuthu - , University of New South Wales, Neuroscience Research Australia (Author)
  • Julian Trollor - , University of New South Wales (Author)
  • Henrik Walter - , Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (Author)
  • Joanna M. Wardlaw - , University of Edinburgh (Author)
  • Wei Wen - , University of New South Wales (Author)
  • Robert Whelan - , Trinity College Dublin (Author)
  • Liana G. Apostolova - , Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (Author)
  • Elisabeth B. Binder - , Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry (Author)
  • Dorret I. Boomsma - , Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) (Author)
  • Vince Calhoun - , University of New Mexico, Emory University (Author)
  • Benedicto Crespo-Facorro - , Hospital Universitario Marques de Valdecilla (Author)
  • Ian J. Deary - , University of Edinburgh (Author)
  • Hilleke Hulshoff Pol - , Utrecht University (Author)
  • Roel A. Ophoff - , Utrecht University, University of California at Los Angeles (Author)
  • Zdenka Pausova - , University of Toronto (Author)
  • Perminder S. Sachdev - , University of New South Wales, Prince of Wales Hospital (Author)
  • Andrew Saykin - , Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (Author)
  • Margaret J. Wright - , Queensland Institute of Medical Research (Author)
  • Paul M. Thompson - , Keck School of Medicine at University of Southern California (Author)
  • Gunter Schumann - , King's College London (KCL) (Author)
  • Sylvane Desrivières - , King's College London (KCL) (Author)

Abstract

DNA methylation, which is modulated by both genetic factors and environmental exposures, may offer a unique opportunity to discover novel biomarkers of disease-related brain phenotypes, even when measured in other tissues than brain, such as blood. A few studies of small sample sizes have revealed associations between blood DNA methylation and neuropsychopathology, however, large-scale epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS) are needed to investigate the utility of DNA methylation profiling as a peripheral marker for the brain. Here, in an analysis of eleven international cohorts, totalling 3337 individuals, we report epigenome-wide meta-analyses of blood DNA methylation with volumes of the hippocampus, thalamus and nucleus accumbens (NAcc)—three subcortical regions selected for their associations with disease and heritability and volumetric variability. Analyses of individual CpGs revealed genome-wide significant associations with hippocampal volume at two loci. No significant associations were found for analyses of thalamus and nucleus accumbens volumes. Cluster-based analyses revealed additional differentially methylated regions (DMRs) associated with hippocampal volume. DNA methylation at these loci affected expression of proximal genes involved in learning and memory, stem cell maintenance and differentiation, fatty acid metabolism and type-2 diabetes. These DNA methylation marks, their interaction with genetic variants and their impact on gene expression offer new insights into the relationship between epigenetic variation and brain structure and may provide the basis for biomarker discovery in neurodegeneration and neuropsychiatric conditions.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)3884-3895
Number of pages12
JournalMolecular psychiatry
Volume26
Issue number8
Publication statusPublished - Aug 2021
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

PubMed 31811260
ORCID /0000-0003-2132-4445/work/160950870
ORCID /0000-0001-5398-5569/work/160953124
ORCID /0000-0002-8493-6396/work/160953474