Epigenetic Changes Associated with Sex and Their Role in Irritable Bowel Syndrome Pathophysiology

Swapna Joshi, PhD
Adjunct Assistant Professor, G. Oppenheimer Center for Neurobiology of Stress and Resilience and Center for Systems Biomedicine, Vatche and Tamar Manoukian Division of Digestive Diseases, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Financial Disclosure: None

IBS is a female-predominant, stress-sensitive disorder with increased prevalence of early adverse life events (EALs). EALs may lead to long-lasting epigenetic changes, including changes in DNA methylation, which can play a role in IBS pathophysiology. A role of sex in DNA methylation associated pathophysiologic mechanisms in IBS have not been investigated. We identified DNA methylation-based subtypes within IBS that were associated with sex as well as increased abdominal pain. A combined DNA methylation and 3` mRNA sequencing analysis identified unique IBS-associated epigenetic and transcriptomic signatures in men and women. Additionally, these changes were associated with different physiologic pathways in men and women suggesting a sex-specific role for epigenetic changes in IBS.