Scientists from Cambridge University and University College London report they have trained an artificial intelligence (AI) model to examine DNA methylation patterns that has identified 13 different types of cancer with 98.2% accuracy. Their work, published in Biology Methods & Protocols, demonstrate that is may soon be possible to deploy…

Researchers from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, say they have developed a method of analyzing DNA methylation from a blood sample that, along with other patient risk factors, can improve the ability to predict the development of type 2 diabetes within the next 10 years. Current prediction tools for type…

A study led by Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai has identified and mapped methylation across a number of different genetic regions associated with Alzheimer’s disease to try and better understand how epigenetic factors may influence disease onset and progression. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia…

   The field of Epigenetics is gathering momentum and correlating epigenetic changes with clinical parameters is well characterized given the abundance of scientific literature published to date. There is however, a distinct paucity of markers that have been translated into clinical practice. Dr Snuderl discusses some of the technologies…

A study examining DNA methylation patterns revealed new insights into epigenetic gene regulation in dementia. In the process, the analysis led to discovery of 84 genes which were not previously known to have an association with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). “Epigenome-wide association studies of Alzheimer’s disease have highlighted neuropathology-associated DNA methylation…

A noninvasive way to make a diagnosis of brain cancer would be a game-changer for both patients and healthcare practitioners, since access tumor tissue is not always possible. Another challenge in treating brain cancers is the accurate diagnosis of subtypes of brain cancers, information that is used to determine prognosis…

Foundation Medicine, a member of the Roche Group, said today it has completed the acquisition of precision oncology company Lexent Bio for an undisclosed price, in a deal designed to expand the buyer’s multiomics capacities— including the adoption of DNA methylation to evaluate cancer progression in broader patient populations. The…

Epigenetics technology developer Base Genomics said today it was launched with an $11 million oversubscribed seed funding round, with proceeds intended toward commercializing a liquid biopsy based on DNA methylation sequencing. Base Genomics said the blood test will be designed to apply Base Genomics’ TET-assisted pyridine borane sequencing (TAPS) technology,…

A new meta-analysis shows that the length of a human pregnancy correlates with DNA changes, including DNA methylation changes. A study among 6,000 newborns shows that for each additional week of gestation, DNA methylation differences were observed in thousands of genes tested in umbilical cord blood. The study appears in…

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), which is DNA that has been shed from ruptured cancer cells into the patient’s bloodstream, has quickly emerged as a useful biomarker for numerous cancer types.   Liquid assays have been developed to use ctDNA as a reliable, non-intrusive technique to assess the genetic mutations for some…

New research published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that DNA methylation can provide effective markers for predicting the prognosis and survival of four cancers. “We report that methylation patterns can predict the prognosis and survival, with good correlation between differential methylation of CpG sites and expression…

Cambridge Epigenetix said today it has strengthened its position in epigenetic biomarker discovery by licensing technologies from Boston Children’s Hospital that the company said could improve the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and other diseases. Through an exclusive license agreement whose value was not disclosed, Cambridge Epigenetix said it has…

There will be roughly 1.7 million new cases of cancer diagnosed in the United States this year. For each one, the earlier the diagnosis the better. Although some cancers have routine screening methods such as colon cancer, multiple barriers prevent one-third of eligible people from being screened. For many cancers,…

Blood tests can be useful to detect cancer. But they have limitations: they may only be useful for a single cancer or require tumor tissue. The Menlo Park-based company GRAIL has developed a tissue-free, multi-cancer detection test (“Post-Diagnosis Cancer Research Solution”) based on methylation sequencing of cfDNA from blood. The…

Oxford Nanopore Technologies and Dutch start-up Cyclomics have announced “developer access” to a new research workflow they call “the world’s first nanopore sequencing-based solution for ultra-sensitive detection of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA).” The system works by detecting and analyzing cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in the blood stream. As tumor cells die,…