Identification of CpG-SNPs associated with type 2 diabetes and differential DNA methylation in human pancreatic islets

Aims/hypothesis To date, the molecular function of most of the reported type 2 diabetes-associated loci remains unknown. The introduction or removal of cytosine–phosphate–guanine (CpG) dinucleotides, which are possible sites of DNA methylation, has been suggested as a potential mechanism through which single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) can affect gene function via epigenetics. The aim of this study was to examine if any of 40 SNPs previously associated with type 2 diabetes introduce or remove a CpG site and if these CpG-SNPs are associated with differential DNA methylation in pancreatic islets of 84 human donors.