Agent skill
bio-methylation-dmr-detection
Differentially methylated region (DMR) detection using methylKit tiles, bsseq BSmooth, and DMRcate. Use when identifying contiguous genomic regions with methylation differences between experimental conditions or cell types.
Install this agent skill to your Project
npx add-skill https://github.com/majiayu000/claude-skill-registry/tree/main/skills/other/dmr-detection
SKILL.md
DMR Detection
methylKit Tile-Based DMRs
library(methylKit)
# Read and process data
meth_obj <- methRead(location = file_list, sample.id = sample_ids, treatment = treatment,
assembly = 'hg38', pipeline = 'bismarkCoverage')
meth_filt <- filterByCoverage(meth_obj, lo.count = 10, hi.perc = 99.9)
# Create tiles (windows)
tiles <- tileMethylCounts(meth_filt, win.size = 1000, step.size = 1000, cov.bases = 3)
tiles_united <- unite(tiles, destrand = TRUE)
# Differential methylation on tiles
diff_tiles <- calculateDiffMeth(tiles_united, overdispersion = 'MN', mc.cores = 4)
# Get significant DMRs
dmrs <- getMethylDiff(diff_tiles, difference = 25, qvalue = 0.01)
dmrs_hyper <- getMethylDiff(diff_tiles, difference = 25, qvalue = 0.01, type = 'hyper')
dmrs_hypo <- getMethylDiff(diff_tiles, difference = 25, qvalue = 0.01, type = 'hypo')
bsseq BSmooth DMRs
library(bsseq)
# Read Bismark cytosine reports
bs <- read.bismark(files = c('sample1.CpG_report.txt.gz', 'sample2.CpG_report.txt.gz'),
sampleNames = c('ctrl', 'treat'),
rmZeroCov = TRUE,
strandCollapse = TRUE)
# Smooth methylation data
bs_smooth <- BSmooth(bs, mc.cores = 4, verbose = TRUE)
# Filter by coverage
bs_cov <- getCoverage(bs_smooth)
keep <- which(rowSums(bs_cov >= 2) == ncol(bs_cov))
bs_filt <- bs_smooth[keep, ]
# Find DMRs with BSmooth
dmrs_bsseq <- dmrFinder(bs_filt, cutoff = c(-0.1, 0.1), stat = 'tstat.corrected')
DMRcate Method
library(DMRcate)
library(minfi)
# From methylation matrix (beta values)
# Rows = CpGs, columns = samples
design <- model.matrix(~ treatment)
# Run DMRcate
myannotation <- cpg.annotate('array', meth_matrix, what = 'Beta', arraytype = 'EPIC',
design = design, coef = 2)
dmr_results <- dmrcate(myannotation, lambda = 1000, C = 2)
dmr_ranges <- extractRanges(dmr_results)
Annotate DMRs with Genes
library(annotatr)
# Build annotations
annots <- build_annotations(genome = 'hg38', annotations = c(
'hg38_basicgenes',
'hg38_genes_promoters',
'hg38_cpg_islands'
))
# Convert DMRs to GRanges
dmr_gr <- as(dmrs, 'GRanges')
# Annotate
dmr_annotated <- annotate_regions(regions = dmr_gr, annotations = annots, ignore.strand = TRUE)
dmr_df <- data.frame(dmr_annotated)
Annotate with genomation
library(genomation)
# Read gene annotations
gene_obj <- readTranscriptFeatures('genes.bed12')
# Annotate DMRs
dmr_gr <- as(dmrs, 'GRanges')
annot_result <- annotateWithGeneParts(dmr_gr, gene_obj)
# Get promoter/exon/intron breakdown
getTargetAnnotationStats(annot_result, percentage = TRUE, precedence = TRUE)
Visualize DMR
library(Gviz)
# Create track for a DMR
chr <- 'chr1'
start <- 1000000
end <- 1010000
# Methylation data track
meth_track <- DataTrack(
range = bs_smooth,
genome = 'hg38',
name = 'Methylation',
type = 'smooth'
)
# Gene annotation track
gene_track <- GeneRegionTrack(TxDb.Hsapiens.UCSC.hg38.knownGene, genome = 'hg38', name = 'Genes')
# Plot
plotTracks(list(meth_track, gene_track), from = start, to = end, chromosome = chr)
Merge Adjacent DMRs
library(GenomicRanges)
dmr_gr <- as(dmrs, 'GRanges')
# Merge DMRs within 500bp
dmr_merged <- reduce(dmr_gr, min.gapwidth = 500)
Export DMRs
# To BED
library(rtracklayer)
export(dmr_gr, 'dmrs.bed', format = 'BED')
# To CSV
dmr_df <- getData(dmrs)
write.csv(dmr_df, 'dmrs.csv', row.names = FALSE)
# To GFF
export(dmr_gr, 'dmrs.gff3', format = 'GFF3')
DMR Comparison Across Methods
| Method | Package | Approach | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tiles | methylKit | Fixed windows | Quick analysis |
| BSmooth | bsseq | Smoothing | WGBS data |
| DMRcate | DMRcate | Kernel smoothing | Array data |
| DSS | DSS | Bayesian | Complex designs |
Key Parameters
methylKit tileMethylCounts
| Parameter | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| win.size | 1000 | Window size (bp) |
| step.size | 1000 | Step size (bp) |
| cov.bases | 0 | Min CpGs per tile |
bsseq dmrFinder
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| cutoff | Methylation difference threshold |
| stat | Statistic to use |
| maxGap | Max gap between CpGs |
Related Skills
- methylkit-analysis - Single CpG analysis
- methylation-calling - Generate input files
- pathway-analysis - Functional annotation of DMR genes
- differential-expression - Compare with expression changes
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