Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2012 Jun 1;7(6):606-14.
doi: 10.4161/epi.20236. Epub 2012 Jun 1.

White blood cell global methylation and IL-6 promoter methylation in association with diet and lifestyle risk factors in a cancer-free population

Fang Fang Zhang  1 , Regina M Santella, Mary Wolff, Maya A Kappil, Steven B Markowitz, Alfredo Morabia
Affiliations

White blood cell global methylation and IL-6 promoter methylation in association with diet and lifestyle risk factors in a cancer-free population

Fang Fang Zhang et al. Epigenetics. .

Abstract

Altered levels of global DNA methylation and gene silencing through methylation of promoter regions can impact cancer risk, but little is known about their environmental determinants. We examined the association between lifestyle factors and levels of global genomic methylation and IL-6 promoter methylation in white blood cell DNA of 165 cancer-free subjects, 18-78 years old, enrolled in the COMIR (Commuting Mode and Inflammatory Response) study, New York, 2009-2010. Besides self-administrated questionnaires on diet and physical activity, we measured weight and height, white blood cell (WBC) counts, plasma levels of high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and genomic (LINE-1) and gene-specific methylation (IL-6) by pyrosequencing in peripheral blood WBC. Mean levels of LINE-1 and IL-6 promoter methylation were 78.2% and 57.1%, respectively. In multivariate linear regression models adjusting for age, gender, race/ethnicity, body mass index, diet, physical activity, WBC counts and CRP, only dietary folate intake from fortified foods was positively associated with LINE-1 methylation. Levels of IL-6 promoter methylation were not significantly correlated with age, gender, race/ethnicity, body mass index, physical activity or diet, including overall dietary patterns and individual food groups and nutrients. There were no apparent associations between levels of methylation and inflammation markers such as WBC counts and hs-CRP. Overall, among several lifestyle factors examined in association with DNA methylation, only dietary folate intake from fortification was associated with LINE-1 methylation. The long-term consequence of folate fortification on DNA methylation needs to be further evaluated in longitudinal settings.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

None
Figure 1. Scatter plot and simple regression line of CRP (mg/L) and LINE-1 methylation (%).
None
Figure 2. Scatter plot and simple regression line of WBC count (cells/mL) and LINE-1 methylation (%).
None
Figure 3. Scatter plot and simple regression line of CRP (mg/L) and IL-6 promoter methylation (%).
None
Figure 4. Scatter plot and simple regression line of WBC count (cells/mL) and IL-6 promoter methylation (%).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Yoo CB, Jones PA. Epigenetic therapy of cancer: past, present and future. Nat Rev Drug Discov. 2006;5:37–50. doi: 10.1038/nrd1930. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Sharma S, Kelly TK, Jones PA. Epigenetics in cancer. Carcinogenesis. 2010;31:27–36. doi: 10.1093/carcin/bgp220. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Wilson AS, Power BE, Molloy PL. DNA hypomethylation and human diseases. Biochim Biophys Acta. 2007;1775:138–62. - PubMed
    1. Esteller M. CpG island hypermethylation and tumor suppressor genes: a booming present, a brighter future. Oncogene. 2002;21:5427–40. doi: 10.1038/sj.onc.1205600. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Choi JY, James SR, Link PA, McCann SE, Hong CC, Davis W, et al. Association between global DNA hypomethylation in leukocytes and risk of breast cancer. Carcinogenesis. 2009;30:1889–97. doi: 10.1093/carcin/bgp143. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types