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CME Credit Offered
CME Credit Offered
Abstract Award
Abstract Award
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Poster Session 2

(577) Predicting Live Birth with the PRC2 Age Index, a Novel Epigenetic Biomarker

Thursday, January 30, 2025
4:00 PM – 6:00 PM  
Objective: Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) is a novel epigenetic biomarker of advanced cellular aging that has not yet been evaluated in pregnancy. PRC2 regions, present in all somatic cells, are associated with CpGs which gain DNA methylation with age. We evaluated whether PRC2 related methylation changes, as a marker of cellular aging, were associated with live birth in a preconception population.

Study Design: This pilot study utilized biobanked samples from patients desiring pregnancy at an academic center. Peripheral blood mononuclear cell DNA was extracted from buffy coat. Using the Illumina Infinium MethylationEPIC BeadChip array, we evaluated CpG methylation at PRC2 sites to generate the “PRC2 Age Index.” Mean PRC2 site methylation was reported for each patient. Patients were then grouped by chronologic age (age by birthdate) decade. The primary outcome was successful live birth, defined as pregnancy and delivery of live infant after 24 weeks. Using the PRC2 Age Index, mean methylation was compared between live birth and no live birth within chronologic age decades.

Results: 64 patient samples were analyzed. In the population, 57.2% had a live birth, of which 80% utilized assisted reproductive therapy. Demographics were overall similar between those with and without live birth. As expected, when the PRC2 Age Index was applied, patients in each chronologic age decade gained methylation. There were trends towards increased methylation of the PRC2 Age Index in people with no live birth across all chronologic age decades (Figure 1). Mean methylation was plotted for the live birth versus the no live birth groups (Figure 2).

Conclusion: The PRC2 Age Index correlated increased methylation at PRC2 sites with aging in a preconception population. Although insignificant, the PRC2 age index exhibited trends in increasing mean methylation for people without live birth, suggesting accelerated cellular aging compared to live birth counterparts. Larger studies evaluating the PRC2 Age-Index may contribute to understanding of biological age and outcomes in a reproductive age population.