SPMSP: a solid-phase PCR with colorimetric read-out for quantitative methylation analysis
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Updated: Jul 2, 2026
Genome-Wide Analysis of DNA Methylation in Gastrointestinal Cancer
Published on: September 18, 2020
Sonja Sievers1, Carla Fritzsch, Cornelius Kuhnen
1CMax Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology, Dortmund, Germany. sonja.sievers@mpi-dortmund.mpg.de
Background:
As DNA methylation has been determined as an important diagnostic biomarker in cancer management, methods for the detection of quantitative DNA methylation which are high-throughput and low-cost are needed.
Materials And Methods:
In this work, we introduce the solid-phase methylation-specific PCR (SPMSP) as a method for quantitative methylation analysis. SPMSP combines methylation-specific DNA amplification on a solid phase with subsequent colorimetric detection in an ELISA-based format.
Results:
In contrast to existing methods for quantitative methylation analysis, SPMSP can be carried out with standard laboratory equipment, i.e. a thermocycler and an ELISA reader. With this method, DNA methylation in the promoter of the APC tumour suppressor gene was quantified in a set of colorectal carcinoma samples.
Conclusion:
As SPMSP can be modified to the analysis of other promoter sequences and is also adaptable to a high-throughput system, SPMSP offers a platform for methylation profiling with widespread applications in cancer research and management.
