Epigenome-wide association study identifies DNA methylation sites associated with target organ damage in older African Americans
Farah Ammous, Wei Zhao, Scott M. Ratliff, Minjung Kho, Lulu Shang, Alana Jones, Ninad S. Chaudhary, Hemant K. Tiwari, Marguerite R. Irvin, Donna K. Arnett, Thomas H. Mosley, Lawrence F. Bielak, Sharon L. R. Kardia, Xiang Zhou, Jennifer A. Smith
Abstract
-gene expression for some CpGs, but no significant mediation by gene expression was detected. Mendelian randomization analyses suggested causality between three CpGs and eGFR (cg04816311, cg10254690, and cg07660512). We also assessed whether the identified CpGs were associated with TOD in 614 African Americans in the Hypertension Genetic Epidemiology Network (HyperGEN) study. Out of three CpGs available for replication, cg04816311 was significantly associated with eGFR (p = 0.0003), LVMI (p = 0.0003), and RWT (p = 0.002). This study found evidence of an association between DNA methylation and TOD in African Americans and highlights the utility of using a multivariate-based model that leverages information across related traits in epigenome-wide association studies.