Illumina methylEPIC arrays on Peruvian individuals with high (>10 ppm) or low (<1 ppm) total hair mercury, a proxy for methylmercury exposure

Methylmercury (MeHg) is an environmental pollutant of global public health concern. MeHg is associated with immune dysfunction but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. The most common route of MeHg exposure is through consumption of fatty fish that contain beneficial n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) that may protect against MeHg toxicity. To better inform individual costs and benefits of fish consumption, we aimed to identify candidate epigenetic biomarkers of biological responses that reflect MeHg toxicity and PUFA protection. We profiled genome-wide DNA methylation using Illumina 850K methylEPIC arrays in whole blood from N=32 age- and sex-matched individuals: N=16 individuals with high (>10 mg/g or ppm) vs. N=16 individuals with low (<1 mg/g or ppm) total hair mercury (a proxy for methylmercury exposure).