Impact of age-related changes in buccal epithelial cells on pediatric epigenetic biomarker research
Abstract Cheek swabs, heterogeneous samples consisting primarily of buccal epithelial cells, are widely used in pediatric DNA methylation studies and biomarker creation. However, the decrease in buccal proportion with age in adults remains unexamined in childhood. We analyzed cheek swabs from 4626 t...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-55909-8 |
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| author | Sarah M. Merrill Chaini Konwar Fizza Fatima Kristy Dever Julia L. MacIsaac Nicole Letourneau Gerald F. Giesbrecht Deborah Dewey Gillian England-Mason Candace R. Lewis Dennis Wang Ai Ling Teh Michael J. Meaney Andrea Gonzalez Jennie G. Noll Carolina De Weerth Nicole R. Bush Kieran J. O’Donnell S. Evelyn Stewart Michael S. Kobor |
| author_facet | Sarah M. Merrill Chaini Konwar Fizza Fatima Kristy Dever Julia L. MacIsaac Nicole Letourneau Gerald F. Giesbrecht Deborah Dewey Gillian England-Mason Candace R. Lewis Dennis Wang Ai Ling Teh Michael J. Meaney Andrea Gonzalez Jennie G. Noll Carolina De Weerth Nicole R. Bush Kieran J. O’Donnell S. Evelyn Stewart Michael S. Kobor |
| author_sort | Sarah M. Merrill |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Cheek swabs, heterogeneous samples consisting primarily of buccal epithelial cells, are widely used in pediatric DNA methylation studies and biomarker creation. However, the decrease in buccal proportion with age in adults remains unexamined in childhood. We analyzed cheek swabs from 4626 typically developing children 2-months to 20-years-old. Estimated buccal proportion declined throughout childhood with both increasing chronological and predicted epigenetic age. However, buccal proportion did not associate with age throughout adolescence. Variability in buccal proportion increased with age through the entire developmental range. These trends held inversely true for neutrophil proportions. Correcting for buccal proportion attenuated the weak association with PedBE age acceleration to non-significance during initial estimation. Notably, correcting for buccal proportion attenuated the association of PedBE age acceleration with obsessive-compulsive disorder and strengthened the association with diurnal cortisol slope. Thus, the age-related change in children’s oral cells is a crucial consideration for cell type-sensitive research. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1df6ac6ab68949dabcd433fc73e31218 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-1df6ac6ab68949dabcd433fc73e312182025-01-12T12:31:34ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-01-0116111610.1038/s41467-025-55909-8Impact of age-related changes in buccal epithelial cells on pediatric epigenetic biomarker researchSarah M. Merrill0Chaini Konwar1Fizza Fatima2Kristy Dever3Julia L. MacIsaac4Nicole Letourneau5Gerald F. Giesbrecht6Deborah Dewey7Gillian England-Mason8Candace R. Lewis9Dennis Wang10Ai Ling Teh11Michael J. Meaney12Andrea Gonzalez13Jennie G. Noll14Carolina De Weerth15Nicole R. Bush16Kieran J. O’Donnell17S. Evelyn Stewart18Michael S. Kobor19Department of Psychology, University of Massachusetts LowellBritish Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British ColumbiaBritish Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British ColumbiaBritish Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British ColumbiaBritish Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British ColumbiaFaculty of Nursing and Cumming School of Medicine, Departments of Pediatrics, Community Health Sciences and Psychiatry, University of CalgaryOwerko Centre, Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of CalgaryFaculty of Nursing and Cumming School of Medicine, Departments of Pediatrics, Community Health Sciences and Psychiatry, University of CalgaryOwerko Centre, Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of CalgarySchool of Life Sciences, Arizona State UniversityInstitute for Human Development and Potential (IHDP), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)Institute for Human Development and Potential (IHDP), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)Institute for Human Development and Potential (IHDP), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster UniversityMount Hope Family Center and Department of Psychology, University of RochesterDonders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour and Radbound UniversityDepartment of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Department of Pediatrics, University of CaliforniaYale Child Study Center and Department of Obstetrics Gynaecology and Reproductive Sciences, Yale School of MedicineBritish Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British ColumbiaBritish Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British ColumbiaAbstract Cheek swabs, heterogeneous samples consisting primarily of buccal epithelial cells, are widely used in pediatric DNA methylation studies and biomarker creation. However, the decrease in buccal proportion with age in adults remains unexamined in childhood. We analyzed cheek swabs from 4626 typically developing children 2-months to 20-years-old. Estimated buccal proportion declined throughout childhood with both increasing chronological and predicted epigenetic age. However, buccal proportion did not associate with age throughout adolescence. Variability in buccal proportion increased with age through the entire developmental range. These trends held inversely true for neutrophil proportions. Correcting for buccal proportion attenuated the weak association with PedBE age acceleration to non-significance during initial estimation. Notably, correcting for buccal proportion attenuated the association of PedBE age acceleration with obsessive-compulsive disorder and strengthened the association with diurnal cortisol slope. Thus, the age-related change in children’s oral cells is a crucial consideration for cell type-sensitive research.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-55909-8 |
| spellingShingle | Sarah M. Merrill Chaini Konwar Fizza Fatima Kristy Dever Julia L. MacIsaac Nicole Letourneau Gerald F. Giesbrecht Deborah Dewey Gillian England-Mason Candace R. Lewis Dennis Wang Ai Ling Teh Michael J. Meaney Andrea Gonzalez Jennie G. Noll Carolina De Weerth Nicole R. Bush Kieran J. O’Donnell S. Evelyn Stewart Michael S. Kobor Impact of age-related changes in buccal epithelial cells on pediatric epigenetic biomarker research Nature Communications |
| title | Impact of age-related changes in buccal epithelial cells on pediatric epigenetic biomarker research |
| title_full | Impact of age-related changes in buccal epithelial cells on pediatric epigenetic biomarker research |
| title_fullStr | Impact of age-related changes in buccal epithelial cells on pediatric epigenetic biomarker research |
| title_full_unstemmed | Impact of age-related changes in buccal epithelial cells on pediatric epigenetic biomarker research |
| title_short | Impact of age-related changes in buccal epithelial cells on pediatric epigenetic biomarker research |
| title_sort | impact of age related changes in buccal epithelial cells on pediatric epigenetic biomarker research |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-55909-8 |
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