Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42471313›Full record

ArticleNature communications2026

Epigenomic modifications define chromatin states to regulate cell-free DNA fragmentomics.

Fanglei Gong, Yuqi Pan, Huizhen Lin, Yunyun An, Mengqi Yang, Xiaoyi Liu, Yunxia Bai, Zhenyu Zhang, Bianbian Tang, Kun Zhang and 5 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

15 authors.

Fanglei Gong *Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation, Shenzhen, China.
Yuqi Pan *Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation, Shenzhen, China.
Huizhen Lin *Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation, Shenzhen, China.
Yunyun AnInstitute of Cancer Research, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, China.
Mengqi YangInstitute of Cancer Research, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, China.
Xiaoyi LiuShenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation, Shenzhen, China.
Yunxia BaiInstitute of Cancer Research, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, China.
Zhenyu ZhangInstitute of Cancer Research, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, China.
Bianbian TangInstitute of Cancer Research, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, China.
Kun ZhangHepato-Biliary Surgery Division, Shenzhen Third People's Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.
Xin ZhaoHepato-Biliary Surgery Division, Shenzhen Third People's Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.
Yu ZhaoMolecular Cancer Research Center, School of Medicine, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China.
Changzheng DuCancer Center, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
Xuetong ShenInstitutes of Biomedical Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, China. snowshen@mac.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4267-5298
Kun SunShenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation, Shenzhen, China. sunkun@szbl.ac.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9883-1616

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Plasma cell-free DNA (cfDNA) fragmentomics offer promising cancer biomarkers, but their molecular regulation remains elusive. Here, we investigate the role of epigenomic modifications in cfDNA fragmentation. We identify strong correlations between cfDNA fragmentomic features and various epigenetic marks measured in cfDNA. We further segment the genome into different chromatin states using histone modification signals, revealing consistent associations with cfDNA fragmentomics. The association is further validated by histone modifier perturbation experiments, confirming chromatin organization as a key regulator of cfDNA fragmentation. CfDNA fragmentomic features associated with Transposon Elements (TEs) outperform genome-wide metrics in cancer diagnosis, reflecting cancer type-specific patterns. Leveraging these insights, we develop TEANA (Transposon Element Analysis in cfDNA), an AI-empowered model using a small set of TE fragmentomic features for pan-cancer detection and tumor-origin prediction, achieving robust performance across independent cohorts. Hence, chromatin states drive cfDNA fragmentation, and dysregulated TEs provide highly informative biomarkers for cancer diagnosis.

Indexed as

Cell-Free Nucleic AcidsChromatinEpigenesis, GeneticNeoplasmsBiomarkers, TumorDNA FragmentationDNA Transposable ElementsEpigenomicsHistonesHumansBiomarkers, TumorCell-Free Nucleic AcidsChromatinDNA Transposable ElementsHistones

Identifiers

PMID42471313
PMCPMC13493819

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.