Gene/Protein
Disease
Symptom
Drug
Enzyme
Compound
Pivot Concepts:
Gene/Protein
Disease
Symptom
Drug
Enzyme
Compound
Target Concepts:
Gene/Protein
Disease
Symptom
Drug
Enzyme
Compound
Query: UMLS:C0239946 (
liver fibrosis
)
8,268
document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)
DNA methylation is a fundamental epigenetic modification to regulate gene expression. N-Myc downstream-regulated gene (NDRG) 2 is a cytoplasmic protein and participates in the pathogenesis of
liver fibrosis
. In this study, the mRNA expression and methylation status of
NDRG2
was evaluated in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). The study included 143 CHB patients and 65 normal controls (NC). The mRNA expression of
NDRG2
in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The methylation status of the
NDRG2
promoter in PBMCs was detected by methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction. The
NDRG2
mRNA level was lower in the CHB group than in the NC group (p < 0.001). Methylation frequency of the
NDRG2
promoter was significantly higher in CHB patients than in the NC group (52.44% vs. 26.15%, p < 0.001). Importantly, the relative expression levels of
NDRG2
mRNA were significantly lower in the methylated group than in the unmethylated group in both CHB patients and NC (p < 0.001). Furthermore, a lower mRNA level and hypermethylation of
NDRG2
were associated with
liver fibrosis
and inflammation grade in CHB. The aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI) score is widely used to predict
liver fibrosis
. The mRNA expression levels and methylation status of
NDRG2
showed a better score compared to APRI for discriminating the severity of
liver fibrosis
. In conclusion, hypermethylation of
NDRG2
in PBMCs was correlated with decreased mRNA expression and with
liver fibrosis
. The methylation status of the
NDRG2
promoter in PBMCs is a potential noninvasive biomarker to predict the severity of
liver fibrosis
.
...
PMID:Hypermethylation of the N-Myc Downstream-Regulated Gene 2 Promoter in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells is Associated with Liver Fibrosis in Chronic Hepatitis B. 2820 50
