CpG-specific methylation at rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis as a marker of treatment response

Furthermore, it has also recently been hypothesized that DNA methylation may alter an individual’s responsiveness to psychiatric drugs, possibly due to variations in serotonin synthesis genes(7). [...]investigation into the effects of differential methylation on the efficacy of treatments in other common diseases appears worthwhile. Potential systemic sclerosis biomarkers and treatment Given these data and the relatively well-established role of differentially methylated drug metabolism enzyme genes in modification of the responsiveness to drug treatment, it is plausible that DNA methylation may also serve as a biomarker of treatment response in other rheumatic conditions associated with aberrant epigenetic profiles such as systemic sclerosis (SSc)(12 ,13). Future perspective Studies which highlight epigenetic modifications associated with response to treatment not only possess enormous clinical utility in terms of optimizing patient care, but may also aid in reducing the economic burden associated with unnecessary drug prescriptions. [...]once studies such as this are validated in larger cohorts, it is essential that standardized procedures for measuring markers across different genomic sites are implemented.