Promoter Hypermethylation of the MEG3 (DLK1/MEG3) Imprinted Gene in Multiple Myeloma

BackgroundMethylation represents the most studied epigenetic modification and results in the silencing of genes involved in various processes such as differentiation and cell-cycle regulation. MEG3 represents an imprinted gene maternally expressed in humans that encodes a nontranslated product. In this survey, we studied the methylation status of the specific gene in multiple myeloma (MM).Patients and MethodsTwenty-one patients with MM (17 with immunoglobulin [Ig] G, 3 with IgA, and 1 with IgM) were evaluated using methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (after DNA bisulphite modification).ResultsPromoter hypermethylation was observed in 12 (57.14%) bone marrow samples and in 9 of 14 (64.28%) available peripheral blood samples. A correlation with disease stage was also observed and also with the disease subtype (IgG, 64.7%; IgA, 0; IgM, 100%).ConclusionWe conclude that promoter hypermethylation of the differentially methylated region of the MEG3 imprinted gene is observed in patients with MM.