DNA甲基化标记法医学应用探讨

CpG的胞嘧啶在DNA复制后多数被甲基化,5-甲基胞嘧啶的分布是贮存表遗传信息的主要形式。近年来研究表明,DNA甲基化标记具有信息含量丰富、相对稳定、检测和结果处理方便、可与SNP联合分析等优点,是一种新的强有力的遗传分析工具。基因组的甲基化差异可用甲基化敏感性限制酶、重亚硫酸盐转化、Maxam-Gilbert裂解等技术来分析。人类基因组甲基化谱有时空特异性、亲源特异性、病理特异性等特征,在法医亲子鉴定、个人识别等方面有潜在应用价值。

Applications of DNA methylation markers in forensic medicine

DNA methylation is a post-replication modification that is predominantly found in cytosines of the dinucleotide sequence CpG. Epigenetic information is stored in the distribution of the modified base 5-methylcytosine. DNA methylation profiles represent a more chemically and biologically stable source of molecular diagnostic information than RNA or most proteins. Recent advances attest to the great promise of DNA methylation markers as powerful future tools in the clinic. In the past decade, DNA methylation analysis has been revolutionized by two technological advances - bisulphite modification of DNA and methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP). The methylation pattern of human genome is space-time specific, sex-specific, parent-of-origin specific and disease specific, providing us an alternative way to solve forensic problems.