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Determination of Human Chronological Age from Biological Samples Based on the Analysis of Methylation of CpG Dinucleotides

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Abstract

On the basis of bioinformatics and statistical analysis of GEO projects to determine the genome-wide profile of human DNA methylation, a list of 41 CpG dinucleotides with high predictive potential was formed to create models for predicting human age from biological samples. The methylation level was determined for 1208 samples of individuals from the Republic of Belarus (275—blood, 466—buccal epithelium, 467—semen). The correlation coefficients R were calculated, and mathematical models for determining the age of individual were constructed. The mean value of the accuracy of age prediction from blood samples using 12 CpG dinucleotides was 3.4 years (3.3 for men, 3.5 for women); from buccal epithelium samples using 6 CpG dinucleotides, it was 4.6 years (4.5 for men, 4.7 for women); from semen samples using 5 CpG dinucleotides, it was 3.0 years. The results obtained will be used as a basis for the development of calculators for predicting the age of an individual based on traces of biological character for forensic experts.

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Funding

The present study was performed within the framework of activity 2 “Development of a Methodology for Determining the Probable Age of an Individual on the Basis of DNA Characteristics” of the scientific and technical program of the Union State “Development of Innovative Gene-Geographic and Genomic Technologies for Identification of an Individual and Human Traits on the Basis of the Study of the Gene Pools of the Union State Regions” (DNA identification).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Genetics and Cytology, National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, 220072, Minsk, Belarus

    V. A. Lemesh, V. N. Kipen, M. V. Bahdanava, A. A. Burakova & O. I. Dobysh

  2. Republican Scientific and Practical Centre Cardiology, 220089, Minsk, Belarus

    A. G. Bulgak & O. V. Zotova

  3. Belarusian Medical Academy of Postgraduate Education, 220013, Minsk, Belarus

    A. V. Bayda

  4. Vavilov Institute of General Genetics, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991, Moscow, Russia

    S. A. Bruskin

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  1. V. A. Lemesh
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  2. V. N. Kipen
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  3. M. V. Bahdanava
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  4. A. A. Burakova
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  5. A. G. Bulgak
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  6. A. V. Bayda
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  7. S. A. Bruskin
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  8. O. V. Zotova
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  9. O. I. Dobysh
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Correspondence to V. A. Lemesh or V. N. Kipen.

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Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Statement of compliance with standards of research involving humans as subjects. All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants involved in the study.

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Translated by A. Kazantseva

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Lemesh, V.A., Kipen, V.N., Bahdanava, M.V. et al. Determination of Human Chronological Age from Biological Samples Based on the Analysis of Methylation of CpG Dinucleotides. Russ J Genet 57, 1389–1397 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1022795421120097

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1022795421120097

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