Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2012, 13(8), 9599-9608; doi:10.3390/ijms13089599
Article

Evaluation of Sex-Specific Gene Expression in Archived Dried Blood Spots (DBS)

James H. Resau 1,† email, Nhan T. Ho 2 email, Karl Dykema 3 email, Matthew S. Faber 4 email, Julia V. Busik 4 email, Radoslav Z. Nickolov 5 email, Kyle A. Furge 3 email, Nigel Paneth 2,6 email, Scott Jewell 1 email and Sok Kean Khoo 7,†,* email
1 Program of Biospecimen Science, Van Andel Research Institute, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA 2 Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48823, USA 3 Laboratory of Computational Biology, Van Andel Research Institute, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA 4 Department of Physiology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA 5 Department of Mathematics & Computer Science, Fayetteville State University, Fayetteville, NC 28301, USA 6 Department of Pediatrics & Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48823, USA 7 Laboratory of Microarray Technology, Van Andel Research Institute, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA † These authors contributed equally to this work.
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 28 April 2012; in revised form: 25 July 2012 / Accepted: 30 July 2012 / Published: 2 August 2012
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Abstract: Screening newborns for treatable serious conditions is mandated in all US states and many other countries. After screening, Guthrie cards with residual blood (whole spots or portions of spots) are typically stored at ambient temperature in many facilities. The potential of archived dried blood spots (DBS) for at-birth molecular studies in epidemiological and clinical research is substantial. However, it is also challenging as analytes from DBS may be degraded due to preparation and storage conditions. We previously reported an improved assay for obtaining global RNA gene expression from blood spots. Here, we evaluated sex-specific gene expression and its preservation in DBS using oligonucleotide microarray technology. We found X inactivation-specific transcript (XIST), lysine-specific demethylase 5D (KDM5D) (also known as selected cDNA on Y, homolog of mouse (SMCY)), uncharacterized LOC729444 (LOC729444), and testis-specific transcript, Y-linked 21 (TTTY21) to be differentially-expressed by sex of the newborn. Our finding that trait-specific RNA gene expression is preserved in unfrozen DBS, demonstrates the technical feasibility of performing molecular genetic profiling using such samples. With millions of DBS potentially available for research, we see new opportunities in using newborn molecular gene expression to better understand molecular pathogenesis of perinatal diseases.
Keywords: archived dried blood spots (DBS); sex-specific; gene expression; molecular genetic profiling; microarray

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Cite This Article

MDPI and ACS Style

Resau, J.H.; Ho, N.T.; Dykema, K.; Faber, M.S.; Busik, J.V.; Nickolov, R.Z.; Furge, K.A.; Paneth, N.; Jewell, S.; Khoo, S.K. Evaluation of Sex-Specific Gene Expression in Archived Dried Blood Spots (DBS). Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2012, 13, 9599-9608.

AMA Style

Resau JH, Ho NT, Dykema K, Faber MS, Busik JV, Nickolov RZ, Furge KA, Paneth N, Jewell S, Khoo SK. Evaluation of Sex-Specific Gene Expression in Archived Dried Blood Spots (DBS). International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2012; 13(8):9599-9608.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Resau, James H.; Ho, Nhan T.; Dykema, Karl; Faber, Matthew S.; Busik, Julia V.; Nickolov, Radoslav Z.; Furge, Kyle A.; Paneth, Nigel; Jewell, Scott; Khoo, Sok Kean. 2012. "Evaluation of Sex-Specific Gene Expression in Archived Dried Blood Spots (DBS)." Int. J. Mol. Sci. 13, no. 8: 9599-9608.

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