Life Epigenetics Releases Open Source Software to Advance Epigenetics Research

MINNEAPOLIS, Aug. 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Life Epigenetics, LLC a subsidiary of GWG Holdings, Inc. today announced the release of two Python open source software packages to epigenetics researchers worldwide. This software will facilitate scientific breakthroughs by accelerating and simplifying the processing of complex epigenetic data that researchers use to advance their understanding of this rapidly evolving science.

Essentially, the software enables automation of the analysis of epigenetic data from Illumina arrays that measure DNA modifications – specifically, adding or removing methyl groups – which are altered in response to human behavior and biological processes. With the software written in Python, the programming language most widely-used by scientists and analysts, it can run natively in command line, Jupyter notebooks, or automation scripts. As a result, these packages will provide an improved user experience for the research community by automating previously laborious steps in epigenetic data pre-processing and quality control.

"We believe that by making this software available to any researcher, we will enable a whole new realm of collaboration and analysis at a critical time for epigenetics research," said Life Epigenetics Lead Data Scientist, Dr. Randal Olson. "Part of our mission is to openly share tools that accelerate research in epigenetics. By open sourcing this software, other researchers and developers can provide feedback and suggest ways to improve epigenetic data processing software for the worldwide research community."

These packages are the first of a series of open source software projects that Life Epigenetics plans to release over the coming year, alongside other services it is building to support researchers' use of epigenetic data.

The current workflow supports:

• Conversion of raw data from 27k, 450k, and 850k Illumina human methylation arrays to normalized Beta values or M-values;
• NOOB normalization of probe intensities;
• Quality control filtering of less reliable probes based on peer-reviewed publications; and
• Sample failure detection and filtering based on advanced outlier detection algorithms.

Full documentation and working examples are available online:

Methylation preprocessing: https://life-epigenetics-methylprep.readthedocs-hosted.com/en/latest/

Methylation quality control: https://life-epigenetics-methylcheck.readthedocs-hosted.com/en/latest/ 

About Life Epigenetics, LLC 

Life Epigenetics, LLC is the leading developer of epigenetic technology for the longevity industry. Through a series of partnerships and collaboration relationships, Life Epigenetics is working to commercialize groundbreaking epigenetic testing capabilities for insights into health and aging. In addition, the company's affiliate, YouSurance is working to embed epigenetic technology into the process of life insurance purchasing to provide consumers a value-added ecosystem that supports their health and reverses aging while reducing the cost of their insurance.

For more information about Life Epigenetics, LLC visit www.lifeegx.com or email [email protected].

SOURCE Life Epigenetics, LLC

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