The association between neighborhood deprivation and DNA methylation in an autopsy cohort Pubblico

Pett, Lindsay (Spring 2023)

Permanent URL: https://etd.library.emory.edu/concern/etds/s1784n255?locale=it
Published

Abstract

Previous research has found that living in a disadvantaged neighborhood is associated with poor health outcomes. Living in disadvantaged neighborhoods may alter inflammation and immune response in the body, which could be reflected in epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation (DNAm). We used robust linear regression models to conduct an Epigenome-Wide Association Study (EWAS) examining the association between the Area Deprivation Index (ADI), a measure of neighborhood deprivation, and DNAm in brain tissue from 159 participants of the Emory Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center cohort, an autopsy cohort of Georgia, USA, residents. We found one CpG site (cg26514961, gene PLXNC1) that was significantly associated with the ADI after controlling for covariates and multiple testing (p-value=5.0e-8). Furthermore, we found synergistic effects of APOE ε4 and ADI on differential DNAm in cg26514961 and all ten most significant CpG sites in the EWAS of ADI. PLXNC1 is related to immune response in the body, which may be how neighborhood conditions affect health.  We also found concordance between brain tissue and other tissues in four of our top ten CpG sites, making them potential candidates for biomarkers in living individuals. These results could provide novel insights into the etiology of health disparities.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Methods 2

Results 6

Discussion 9

Tables and Figures 15

Citations 21

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