Single-cell epigenome-wide association study (scEWAS)

A single-cell epigenome-wide association study (scEWAS) interrogates epigenetic marks — primarily DNA methylation or chromatin accessibility — across the entire genome at single-cell resolution, then statistically associates variation in those marks with a phenotype, disease, or exposure. By resolving cell-type heterogeneity that bulk EWAS cannot separate, scEWAS identifies epigenetic signals that are specific to rare or intermixed cell populations rather than averaged across tissues.