EAS Clock: a 38-CpG methylation estimator of chronological age for East Asian populations
Using methylation profiles from cohorts in Taiwan, Japan and China, researchers built the EAS Clock, a 38-CpG model whose predicted ages correlated with chronological age in training and independent testing data. It estimates chronological age; it is not shown to predict disease or lifespan. [1]
Automatic summary · not editorially reviewed
The key findings
Most existing epigenetic clocks were developed mainly in non-East Asian populations and may be less well calibrated across ancestries, motivating an East Asian-specific clock. [1]
A 38-CpG model was built and predicted ages correlated with chronological age in training and independent testing datasets, with residuals near zero. [1]
Genes linked to the selected CpGs were associated with neurobiological, musculoskeletal, immune-inflammatory and lipid-metabolic pathways. [1]
The source at a glance
- Study type / format
- Epigenetic clock development study (abstract)
- Population / context
- East Asian cohorts from Taiwan, Japan and China
- Summary based on
- Study abstract
- Original publication
- June 30, 2026
Why an East Asian-specific methylation clock was built
The abstract notes that population aging raises the burden of age-related disease and that molecular tools to estimate aging are needed. DNA methylation is described as a heritable epigenetic mark linked to development and age-related disease that can capture biological aging and predict chronological age. Most existing epigenetic clocks were developed mainly in non-East Asian populations and may be less well calibrated across ancestries. The researchers therefore analyzed methylation profiles from East Asian cohorts in Taiwan, Japan and China to develop an East Asian-specific clock, the EAS Clock.
Supporting source [1]
38 CpG sites selected and tested in independent data
After quality control and probe filtering, the team built a parsimonious model from 38 CpG sites using stepwise multivariate regression with forward selection and the Bayesian Information Criterion. Predicted and chronological ages correlated significantly in both the training and the independent testing datasets, and residuals were centered near zero. Enrichment analyses linked genes associated with the selected CpGs to neurobiological, musculoskeletal, immune-inflammatory and lipid-metabolic pathways. The authors conclude that the EAS Clock is a compact methylation-based estimator of chronological age tailored to East Asian populations.
Supporting source [1]
Abstract-only scope: age estimation, not outcome prediction
The available text is an abstract; the full text was not reviewed. It reports correlations between predicted and chronological age but no figures, sample sizes, follow-up or disease outcomes. The clock is presented as an estimator of chronological age, not as a predictor of disease, mortality or lifespan, and the pathway findings are gene-set associations rather than demonstrated mechanisms. Because the model was built for East Asian cohorts, its performance in other ancestries is not described here.
Supporting source [1]
How to interpret this
Abstract only; the full text was not reviewed. No sample sizes, correlation values, follow-up or disease outcomes are reported. The clock estimates chronological age; disease, mortality or lifespan prediction is not shown, and pathway findings are gene-set associations, not mechanisms. Performance in non-East Asian ancestries is not described.
Based on the study abstract; the full paper, tables and supplementary data were not reviewed.
Source & supporting passages
Lu KC, Kuo PH, Chattopadhyay A, Lu TP. · europepmc.org · June 30, 2026