Chiang Chiung-Hung, Chen Yen-Chung, Nfor Oswald Ndi, Lu Wen-Yu, Liaw Yung-Po
Department of Public Health, Institute of Public Health, Chung Shan Medical University, No. 110 Sec. 1 Jianguo N. Road, Taichung, 40201, Taiwan.
Department of Neurology, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua City, 510, Changhua County, Taiwan.
Sci Rep. 2025 May 26;15(1):18283. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-01536-8.
This study investigated the relationship between age, sex, and methylation levels of the Krüppel-like factor 14 (KLF14) promoter. Utilizing data from the Taiwan Biobank (TWB), established in 2005, we analyzed a cohort of 1,141 participants. DNA methylation analyses were conducted by Health GeneTech Corp., commissioned by TWB. Methylation levels of the KLF14 promoter were determined by averaging the values of 10 CpG sites: cg09823095, cg25109431, cg21449170, cg05651960, cg18751682, cg08097417, cg07955995, cg22285878, cg21520933, and cg06533629. Participants were divided into four age groups (30-40, 40-50, 50-60, and 60-70 years). Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to assess the impact of age and sex on KLF14 promoter methylation and to evaluate the interaction between these variables. Our findings revealed that men exhibited higher KLF14 promoter methylation levels, with a significant age-dependent increase. Notably, in participants aged over 50, KLF14 methylation levels were substantially higher in men compared to women (β = 0.00336, P = 0.0108 for the 50-60 age group; β = 0.00472, P = 0.0238 for the 60-70 age group). Our study reveals a sex-specific increase in KLF14 promoter methylation among men over 50, with no significant differences observed in individuals younger than 50. This finding suggests that age and sex may play a crucial role in the epigenetic regulation of KLF14.
本研究调查了年龄、性别与Krüppel样因子14（KLF14）启动子甲基化水平之间的关系。利用2005年建立的台湾生物银行（TWB）的数据，我们分析了1141名参与者组成的队列。DNA甲基化分析由TWB委托的健康基因科技公司进行。KLF14启动子的甲基化水平通过平均10个CpG位点的值来确定：cg09823095、cg25109431、cg21449170、cg05651960、cg18751682、cg08097417、cg07955995、cg22285878、cg21520933和cg06533629。参与者被分为四个年龄组（30 - 40岁、40 - 50岁、50 - 60岁和60 - 70岁）。进行了多元线性回归分析，以评估年龄和性别对KLF14启动子甲基化的影响，并评估这些变量之间的相互作用。我们的研究结果显示，男性的KLF14启动子甲基化水平较高，且随年龄有显著增加。值得注意的是，在50岁以上的参与者中，男性的KLF14甲基化水平显著高于女性（50 - 60岁年龄组β = 0.00336，P = 0.0108；60 - 70岁年龄组β = 0.00472，P = 0.0238）。我们的研究揭示了50岁以上男性中KLF14启动子甲基化存在性别特异性增加，而50岁以下个体未观察到显著差异。这一发现表明年龄和性别可能在KLF14的表观遗传调控中起关键作用。
