Project description:Peripheral blood from thirty-four monozygotic twin subjects from the general population (n = 17 twin pairs) was collected for epigenomic analysis via Illumina Infinium HumanMethylation450 Beadchip. All subjects were screened for DSM-IV based criteria for both current and lifetime psychiatric disorders. Out of 17 twin pairs, there were: 7 healthy twin pairs where none of the twins of a pair met criteria for any DSM-IV disorder; 6 discordant twin pairs where only one of the twins of each pair met diagnostic criteria; and 4 concordant twin pairs where both twins of a pair met clinical DSM-IV based criteria.
Project description:Gene expression profiling in peripheral blood cells from monozygotic twin pairs with various sytemic autoimmune diseases revealed 92 genes that could discriminate between MZ twin pairs and unrelated-matched controls. No genes were found that could discriminate between proband and unaffected twin pairs, or between the various disease phenotypes.
Project description:DNA methylation data for 479 women from 130 families including 66 monozygotic twin pairs, 66 dizygotic twin pairs and 215 sisters of twins.
Project description:The study aims to assess gene expression in plaque samples collected from twin pairs that are both concordant and discordant with respect to dental Caries diagnosis. File Naming Conventions are as follows: Patient ID : 4 digit identifier Diagnosis : Caries Negative(CN) or Caries Positive(CP) Type of Twin: Monozygotic(MZ)or Dizygotic(DZ) Pair to xxxx: 4 digit twin identifier maps to the Patient ID E.g: 2126_CP_MZ_PairTo_2125_fastqc - 2126 is a caries positive patient and pairs to monozygotic twin pair 2125. Plaque samples from twin pairs that are both concordant and discordant with respect to dental Caries diagnosis are enriched for bacterial messenger RNA to study the gene expression differences in the samples.
Project description:The aim of the project was to identify altered plasma proteins and altered plasma N-glycopeptides from monozygotic twin pairs who are discordant for body weight. We performed targeted quantitative N-glycoproteomics from plasma samples from 48 twin pairs (n = 96 individuals).
Project description:Analysis of microRNA expression in vastus lateralis muscle biopsies from 11 genetically identical twin pairs discordant for type 2 diabetes. This eliminates the influence of genotype and leads to the identification of microRNAs that are exclusively influenced by environmental (non-genetic) factors. Total RNA containing microRNAs were obtained from muscle biopsies (vastus lateralis) from genetically identical twin pairs (n=11 pairs). All twin pairs were discordant in respect to their glucose tolerance; thus, one twin has diabetes whereas the co-twin has either normal or impaired glucose tolerance.
Project description:Genome-wide MeDIP-Sequencing of 23 monozygotic twin pairs (n=46) from Australia discordant for major depressive disorder (MDD). MeDIP-seq of 23 monozygotic twin pairs discordant for major depressive disorder. MZ twin pairs were compared to identify significantly differently methylated sites associated with MDD.
Project description:Genome wide DNA methylation profiling with the HumanMethylation450 BeadChip (450k) of peripheral blood samples of 46 adult female monozygotic twin-pairs obtained at the same time point. Samples included 41 healthy females (not diagnosed with cancer to date) paired with their co-twin diagnosed with cancer within a 5 year window around the time of sampling as well as 5 extra pairs with a co-twin diagnosed with cancer within 11 to 5 years prior to blood sampling.
Project description:Meditation and other alternative practices have long been known to promote various health benefits, presumably by fostering a blood and tissue environment that enhances resilience to stress. Here, we used an integrated, multidisciplinary approach that couples quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG), biometrics, molecular, and biochemical data at multiple time points to investigate the impact of mind-based interventions on the body in a cohort of twins during an intensive week-long meditation retreat. We aim to show the feasibility of a novel design aimed to address individual changes controlling for intersubject trait variation (via twin control) and explore the role of genetic background on multi-omic factors during meditation. Interestingly, twin pairs showed significant spectral power correlations while in separate rooms and only one twin was meditating. These similarities were not observed in mismatched twin pairs. Heart rate dynamics assessments showed alignment among twin pairs that were absent between unmatched pairs. In addition, changes in gene expression, metabolites, and cytokines in blood plasma associated with specific meditative states showed patterns of change related to time points. Twin sets were similar in multiple domains before the start of the retreat, showed considerable divergence at the mid-point, and looked more similar by the end of the retreat. To our knowledge, this study is novel within the twin research paradigm and is a first step toward exploring the effects of meditation in twins.