NEW YORK, June 26 (GenomeWeb News) - Epigenomics and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute have released epigenetic data for human chromosomes 6, 20, and 22, Epigenomics said today.
The data represent the first results of the Human Epigenome Project, which was launched in 2003 with the goal of identifying and mapping sites in the human genome that are modified by DNA methylation.
The data sets for the three chromosomes came from 43 samples comprising 12 different tissues and cell types. The project has so far studied more than 2,500 different genomic loci and has found that 21 percent of all loci are differentially methylated in at least one tissue, Epigenomics said.
Epigenomics said that detailed results of the study will be published "over the coming months." The company has patented the results, and said it will use the data for the development of diagnostic products.
The data from the study is available for non-commercial research use at http://www.sanger.ac.uk/epigenome and http://www.epigenome.org.
The Human Epigenome Project is a collaboration between Epigenomics and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and has been jointly funded by both partners. Epigenomics said that it is conducting "methylation-specific steps in preanalytics" and amplification of the probes, while Sanger is performing the sequencing.