Droplet digital PCR is an accurate method to assess methylation status on FFPE samples

Most tissue samples available for cancer research are archived as formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples. However, the fixation process and the long storage duration lead to DNA fragmentation and hinder epigenome analysis. The use of droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) to detect DNA methylation has recently emerged. In this study, we compare an optimized ddPCR assay with a conventional qPCR assay by targeting a dilution series of control DNA. In addition, we compare the ddPCR technology with results from Infinium arrays targeting two separate CpG sites on a set of colon adenoma FFPE samples. Our data demonstrate that qPCR and ddPCR assess methylation status equally well on dilution controls with a high DNA input. However, the methylation detection on low-input samples is more accurate using ddPCR. The proposed primer design (methylation-independent primers with amplification of solely the converted DNA target) will allow for methylation detection, independent of bisulfite conversion efficiency. Those data show that ddPCR can be used for methylation analysis on FFPE samples with a wide range of DNA input and that the precision of the assay depends largely on the total amount of amplifiable DNA fragments. Due to accessibility of the ddPCR technology and its accuracy on high- as well as low-DNA input samples, we propose the use of this approach for studies involving degraded FFPE samples.