The biochemistry of aging is complex, with biologically significant changes occurring in proteins, lipids and nucleic acids. One of these changes is in the methylation of DNA. DNA methylation is a mechanism modifying gene expression. The methylation of sequences in or near regulatory elements can suppress gene expression through effects on DNA binding proteins and chromatin structure. Both increases and decreases in methylation occur with aging, depending on the tissue and the gene. These changes can have pathologic consequences, contributing to the development of malignancies and autoimmunity with aging, and possibly to other disorders as well. Thus, while aging can impact on DNA methylation, the changes in DNA methylation can also impact on aging. This review summarizes current evidence for changes in the methylation status of specific genes with aging, their impact on diseases that develop with aging, and mechanisms that may contribute to the altered DNA methylation patterns. As this field is still developing, it is anticipated that new knowledge will continue to accumulate rapidly.

中文翻译：

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老化对DNA甲基化的影响。

衰老的生物化学很复杂，蛋白质，脂质和核酸发生生物学上的重大变化。这些变化之一是DNA的甲基化。DNA甲基化是修饰基因表达的机制。调节元件中或附近的序列的甲基化可通过影响DNA结合蛋白和染色质结构来抑制基因表达。甲基化的增加和减少都随着衰老而发生，具体取决于组织和基因。这些变化可能产生病理学后果，导致恶性肿瘤的发展和自身免疫性的衰老，还可能导致其他疾病。因此，虽然老化会影响DNA甲基化，但DNA甲基化的变化也会影响老化。这篇综述总结了当前特定基因甲基化状态随年龄的变化，其对随着年龄增长而发展的疾病的影响以及可能导致DNA甲基化模式改变的机制的证据。随着该领域的不断发展，预计新知识将继续迅速积累。