Cardiovascular disease biomarkers derived from circulating cell-free DNA methylation

Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) remains a major cause of worldwide mortality. The syndrome occurs when blood flow to the heart muscle is decreased or blocked, causing muscle tissues to die or malfunction. There are three main types of ACS: Non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction, ST-elevation myocardial infarction, and unstable angina. The treatment depends on the type of ACS, and this is decided by a combination of clinical findings, such as electrocardiogram and plasma biomarkers. Circulating cell-free DNA (ccfDNA) is proposed as an additional marker for ACS since the damaged tissues can release DNA to the bloodstream. We used ccfDNA methylation profiles for differentiating between the ACS types and provided computational tools to repeat similar analysis for other diseases. We leveraged cell type specificity of DNA methylation to deconvolute the ccfDNA cell types of origin and to find methylation-based biomarkers that stratify patients. We identified hundreds of methylation markers associated with ACS types and validated them in an independent cohort. Many such markers were associated with genes involved in cardiovascular conditions and inflammation. ccfDNA methylation showed promise as a non-invasive diagnostic for acute coronary events. These methods are not limited to acute events, and may be used for chronic cardiovascular diseases as well.

Type: Other
Archiver: European Genome-Phenome Archive (EGA)

2 Datasets 1 Publication

Click on a Dataset ID in the table below to learn more, and to find out who to contact about access to these data

Dataset ID	Description	Technology	Samples
EGAD00001010934	The dataset consists of targeted sequencing data obtained from an independent cohort of 11 patients to validate discriminative DMRs (differentially methylated regions) for Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) subtypes. The cohort includes 2 healthy subjects, 4 STEMI (ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction), 3 NSTEMI (non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction), and 2 UA (unstable angina) patients. The sequencing panel targeted 18,831 CpGs for analysis, reaching at least 5 reads coverage for 75% of the targeted CpGs in each sample. The sequencing was performed using the NEBNext Enzymatic Methyl-seq Module and the Nonacus Cell3TMTarget: Library Preparation kit, followed by probe hybridization, capture enrichment, and sequencing on the Novaseq 6000 platform, generating 400 million reads. The dataset is in raw fastq format.	Illumina NovaSeq 6000	2
EGAD00001010935	The dataset contains valuable genomic data from a discovery cohort consisting of 29 individuals. This cohort is comprised of 8 healthy individuals (control), 8 patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), 7 patients with non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), and 6 patients with unstable angina (UA). The genomic data was obtained by isolating cell-free circulating DNA (ccfDNA) and subjecting it to bisulfite conversion using a low-input BS-seq (PBAT) protocol. Sequencing was done on the Novaseq 6000 platform.	Illumina NovaSeq 6000	16

Publications	Citations
Cardiovascular disease biomarkers derived from circulating cell-free DNA methylation. Cuadrat RRC, Kratzer A, Arnal HG, Rathgeber AC, Wreczycka K, Blume A, Gündüz IB, Ebenal V, Mauno T, Osberg B, Moobed M, Hartung J, Jakobs K, Seppelt C, Meteva D, Haghikia A, Leistner DM, Landmesser U, Akalin A. NAR Genom Bioinform 5: 2023 lqad061	7