Chapter 11 - 2D Nanomaterials for Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis of DNA Methylation

Abstract

DNA methylation is a key epigenetic modification that finely maintains genomic stability and drives many cellular functions by regulating the gene expression pathways. Eukaryotic cell's DNA conserves a specific methylation pattern across the entire genome that defines the epigenetic state of the cell and reflects the tissue of origin. Subtle changes in this methylation pattern can significantly alter many of the cellular functions and trigger disease progression such as cancer. Detection of DNA methylation has therefore emerged as very crucial to the prognosis and diagnosis of the relevant disorders to introduce better treatment. Bisulfite sequencing is considered as one of the gold standard techniques for DNA methylation detection, which is however restricted by expensive instrumentation and laborious procedure. The global scenario of diseases like cancer has therefore led to devise many techniques to provide high-throughput, real-time, and point-of-care solution. In this context, recent application of 2D nanomaterials in DNA methylation analysis has opened new avenues that may potentially revolutionize the current limitations. Two-dimensional nanomaterials are solely monolayer crystals of one-atom thickness, and their structural and physiochemical properties can exploit the equivalent properties of DNA. The huge drive in 2D nanomaterial research following the discovery of graphene thus has come hand in hand to the inception of DNA methylation detection. Due to the nature of the 2D nanomaterials, qualitative and quantitative analysis of DNA methylation using them is intuitively quicker and needless of huge DNA sample in comparison with the other methods. Although many approaches till now are simulated in silico, innovations in technology will certainly pave the way to carry them out in practical. This chapter explores the quantitative and qualitative methods of DNA methylation using 2D nanomaterials and also sheds light on the future perspective of the development in this arena.