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Application of array-based age prediction models to post-mortem tissue samples.
Jeong Min Lee1, Sang Un Park1, Soong Deok Lee2
1Department of Forensic Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Forensic Science International. Genetics
|October 19, 2023
Summary
Epigenetic clocks, using DNA methylation, accurately predict age across various human tissues in Koreans. These forensic tools remain robust even with degraded DNA samples.
Area of Science:
- Forensic Science
- Epigenetics
- Genomics
Background:
- DNA methylation patterns show strong correlations with chronological age.
- Epigenetic clocks, based on methylation data, are valuable tools for age prediction.
- These clocks have potential applications in forensic investigations for identifying unknown individuals.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the performance of existing DNA methylation-based age prediction models in a Korean population.
- To assess age prediction accuracy across nine different post-mortem tissue types.
- To investigate the impact of DNA quantity and quality on age prediction models.
Main Methods:
- Collected 180 post-mortem tissue samples from 20 Korean individuals (aged 18-78).
- Performed DNA methylation profiling using the Infinium MethylationEPIC array.
- Tested multiple established array-based age prediction models, including pan-tissue, tissue-specific, Hannum, Skin & Blood, Zhang, PhenoAge, and MEAT clocks.
Main Results:
- Pan-tissue clocks showed moderate accuracy (MAE=8.7 years).
- Hannum, Skin & Blood, and Zhang clocks achieved high accuracy in blood samples (MAE < 5 years).
- The muscle-specific MEAT clock demonstrated high accuracy in muscle tissue (MAE=4.7 years).
- Models performed well in Koreans, despite prior development in European cohorts.
- Age prediction remained robust under conditions of low DNA quantity and fragmentation.
Conclusions:
- Established epigenetic clocks are effective for age prediction in Korean post-mortem tissues.
- Tissue-specific clocks offer high accuracy for relevant sample types.
- DNA methylation age prediction models are valuable forensic tools, even with compromised DNA samples.
