Publications by authors named "R Jirtle"
Article Synopsis
- Alzheimer's disease is more prevalent in non-Hispanic Blacks compared to non-Hispanic Whites, prompting a study on the role of methylation in this disparity.
- Researchers analyzed brain tissue DNA to identify differentially methylated regions (DMRs) related to imprint control regions (ICRs) in both AD patients and controls, revealing significant differences in methylation patterns.
- The study found 81 DMRs in non-Hispanic Black AD patients and 27 in non-Hispanic White AD patients, suggesting that changes in DNA methylation related to genomic imprinting may influence the risk of Alzheimer's and vary between these populations.
Article Synopsis
- Differentially methylated imprint control regions (ICRs) play a crucial role in regulating gene expression, and their dysregulation can lead to chronic diseases, but current methods for profiling them are limited.
- A custom methylation array with 22,819 probes was developed to better assess ICRs, showing promise in comparison to traditional methods like WGBS and the Human Imprintome array.
- This new tool aims to enhance the accuracy of ICR assessments and facilitate research on their links to diseases and genetic imprinting throughout an individual’s life.
Imprinted genes - critical for growth, metabolism, and neuronal function - are expressed from one parental allele. Parent-of-origin-dependent CpG methylation regulates this expression at imprint control regions (ICRs). Since ICRs are established before tissue specification, these methylation marks are similar across cell types.
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- Professor Randy L. Jirtle, a leading researcher in epigenetics and genomic imprinting, has significantly contributed to our understanding of how environmental factors during early life can influence adult disease outcomes.
- He has published over 200 peer-reviewed articles and received numerous accolades for his work, including the Distinguished Achievement Award and the Epigenetic Medicine Award.
- Jirtle is known for his role as a public educator on epigenetics, featuring in documentaries and programs that highlight the impact of maternal diet on genetic expression in offspring.
Genomic imprinting is an inherited form of parent-of-origin specific epigenetic gene regulation that is dysregulated by poor prenatal nutrition and environmental toxins. encodes for TASK3, a pH-regulated potassium channel membrane protein that is overexpressed in 40% of breast cancer. However, gene amplification accounts for increased expression in <10% of these breast cancers.
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