Prader-Willi Syndrome: The Disease that Opened up Epigenomic-Based Preemptive Medicine

Dynamical network biomarkers: Theory and applications

This paper reviews theory of DNB (Dynamical Network Biomarkers) and its applications including both modern medicine and traditional medicine. We show that omics data such as gene/protein expression profiles can be effectively used to detect pre-disease states before critical transitions from healthy states to disease states by using the DNB theory. The DNB theory with big biological data is expected to lead to ultra-early precision and preventive medicine.

Suppression of Dynamical Network Biomarker Signals at the Predisease State (Mibyou) before Metabolic Syndrome in Mice by a Traditional Japanese Medicine (Kampo Formula) Bofutsushosan

Due to the increasing incidence of metabolic syndrome, the development of new therapeutic strategies is urgently required. One promising approach is to focus on the predisease state (so-called Mibyou in traditional Japanese medicine) before metabolic syndrome as a preemptive medical target. We recently succeeded in detecting a predisease state before metabolic syndrome using a mathematical theory called the dynamical network biomarker (DNB) theory. The detected predisease state was characterized by 147 DNB genes among a total of 24,217 genes in TSOD (Tsumura-Suzuki Obese Diabetes) mice, a well-accepted model of metabolic syndrome, at 5 weeks of age. The timing of the predisease state was much earlier than the onset of metabolic syndrome in TSOD mice reported to be at approximately 8-12 weeks of age. In the present study, we investigated whether the predisease state in TSOD mice can be inhibited by the oral administration of a Kampo formula, bofutsushosan (BTS), which is usually used to treat obese patients with metabolic syndrome in Japan, from 3 to 7 weeks of age. We found the comprehensive suppression of the early warning signals of the DNB genes by BTS at 5 weeks of age and later. Specifically, the standard deviations of 134 genes among the 147 DNB genes decreased at 5 weeks of age as compared to the nontreatment control group, and 80 of them showed more than 50% reduction. In addition, at 7 weeks of age, the body weight and blood glucose level were significantly lower in the BTS-treated group than in the nontreatment control group. The results of our study suggest a novel mechanism of BTS; it suppressed fluctuations of the DNB genes at the predisease state before metabolic syndrome and thus prevented the subsequent transition to metabolic syndrome. In conclusion, this study demonstrated the preventive and preemptive effects of a Kampo formula on Mibyou before metabolic syndrome for the first time based on scientific evaluation.

Ageing and epigenetics: linking neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders

Epigenetics has classically been recognized as crucial to neurodevelopment and neurodevelopmental disorders. More recently its role in ageing processes, including neurodegenerative disorders has emerged, although far more research is required in this area, particularly in humans. Epigenetic processes that regulate gene expression comprise strata of DNA modification (e.g. methylation), histone modification (e.g. histone acetylation), and mRNA translation (e.g. by microRNAs). These strata are progressively more fluid whereby changes in DNA methylation may persist for many years whilst expression of microRNAs fluctuates over short periods. There is considerable 'cross-talk' between these epigenetic strata. Epigenetic mechanisms are open to parental imprinting and thus they are candidates for linking diseases, not just over the life course, but also intergenerationally. There is a genetic overlap between intellectual disability and cognitive ageing. Epigenetic pathways may strengthen the links between neurodevelopmental disorders and neurodegenerative diseases. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: DNA methylation has relevance to both neurological development and neurodegeneration. Links between epigenetics, genotype and phenotype are emerging.