Whole genome epigenetic profiling in Parkinson’s disease
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Whole genome epigenetic profiling in Parkinson’s disease: an integrated genetic-epigenetic approach
IRAS ID
146619
Contact name
Nigel Williams
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Cardiff University
Research summary
Similar to diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and type 2 diabetes, the reason we develop neurological diseases (e.g. Parkinson’s disease (PD), Frontal Temporal Dementia, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Multiple Sclerosis, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, Picks disease, Alzheimer’s disease) is complex and we expect the large majority of cases to be caused by a combination of genetic and environmental risk factors. Epigenetic marks such as DNA methylation (DNAm) are important, well-characterised mechanisms that chemically modifies DNA to influence gene function without changing the DNA sequence. The importance of DNAm in the causation and progression of many diseases is now well-established.
As with PD, many neurological diseases have a well characterised neuropathology we have a very good understanding of which brain regions are affected and this is often complemented by the availability of good quality post mortem tissue. Neurological diseases are therefore particularly well suited to investigations of epigenetic marks, but despite this, there is a paucity of such studies.
In this project we will examine whether abnormal gene regulation plays a crucial role in the development of PD and other related neurological diseases (e.g. Frontal Temporal Dementia, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Multiple Sclerosis, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, Picks disease, Alzheimer’s disease) by studying DNA from donated post-mortem tissue (available in research tissue banks) from over 100 individuals. We will then assess whether individuals with disease have a different epigenetic signature to those who do not.
REC name
West Midlands - Solihull Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/WM/0129
Date of REC Opinion
11 Apr 2014
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion