表观遗传修饰与肝癌的关系

表观遗传学是指基因的核苷酸序列在不发生改变的情况下,基因表达了可遗传的表型变化.表观遗传机制的失调在人类恶性肿瘤包括肝癌发生、发展过程中发挥了重要作用.目前研究结果发现:大量表观遗传可调节有关基因靶点和信号转导通路,如DNA甲基化、组蛋白修饰、RNA调节基因沉默等与肝癌的发生和发展密切相关.探究这些异常的表观遗传机制对诊断和治疗肝癌有着重要的意义.     

表观遗传学与乳腺癌

表观遗传学是基于非DNA序列改变而产生的基因表达的变化,与肿瘤的发生密切相关,具有可逆性和遗传性,主要包括DNA甲基化、组蛋白修饰和染色体重组,它们相互作用,影响基因表达.乳腺癌中,表观遗传调节改变了一些重要基因的表达,导致了肿瘤的产生和发展.表观遗传学的研究对乳腺癌的发生、发展、早期诊断、预后评估、治疗和复发监测产生了深远的影响.     

肝细胞癌表观遗传学改变和重编程

肝细胞癌是世界范围内常见的恶性肿瘤.研究表明,由遗传学和表观遗传学改变引起的细胞恶性改变是肿瘤发生的重要原因.近年来,人们发现表观遗传学异常在肿瘤的发生、发展过程中也起到非常重要的作用.表观遗传修饰主要包括组蛋白乙酰化和DNA甲基化,组蛋白乙酰化和DNA低甲基化可促进基因表达,反之,则可抑制基因表达.在肝细胞癌的发生发展过程中,抑癌基因的甲基化特别是高甲基化起着重要作用,与肝细胞癌的形成有密切关系.肝癌的表观遗传学研究对肝癌的早期诊断和病情预后的监测及其防治具有重要意义.     

表观遗传学与乳腺癌

表观遗传学是基于非DNA序列改变而产生的基因表达的变化,与肿瘤的发生密切相关,具有可逆性和遗传性,主要包括DNA甲基化、组蛋白修饰和染色体重组,它们相互作用,影响基因表达。乳腺癌中,表观遗传调节改变了一些重要基因的表达,导致了肿瘤的产生和发展。表观遗传学的研究对乳腺癌的发生、发展、早期诊断、预后评估、治疗和复发监测产生了深远的影响。     

前列腺癌的表观遗传学研究进展

前列腺癌是男性最常见的恶性肿瘤之一,其病因和发病机制尚不清楚。表观遗传参与了前列腺癌病程的各个阶段,与前列腺癌的发生、发展及转移密切相关,其中DNA甲基化和组蛋白修饰是前列腺癌中最为重要的两种表观遗传表现形式。DNA异常甲基化对肿瘤发生影响机制主要有:基因组广泛性低甲基化、局部过度甲基化、基因突变热点,与前列腺癌DNA损伤修复、激素应答、肿瘤细胞浸润/转移、细胞周期调控等过程密切相关。而组蛋白修饰的异常则将引起相应染色体结构和基因转录水平改变,影响细胞周期、分化和凋亡,导致前列腺癌的发生。目前已有一些针对前列腺癌表观遗传改变的治疗,主要有DNA甲基化转移酶和组蛋白去乙酰化酶抑制剂,并取得了一定的效果。相信随着对表观遗传学研究的深入,必将为前列腺癌的治疗开辟一条新思路。     

肥胖导致男性不育的表观遗传机制研究进展

肥胖引发表观遗传改变可导致男性出现不育表型。关于肥胖与男性不育的关系问题,早期研究多集中于内分泌方面。近年研究发现肥胖还可以引发机体表观遗传改变,如DNA甲基化,残余组蛋白修饰,小RNA等,影响精子成熟发育。DNA甲基化是胞嘧啶-磷酸-鸟嘌呤二核苷酸的胞嘧啶残基上的调节标记,肥胖导致DNA甲基化异常,并改变mRNA表达丰度,还可以影响印记基因表达出现印记基因病。残余组蛋白修饰方式包括甲基化、乙酰化等,它们可以相互作用或协同作用,以保证精子正常生长发育。肥胖可以改变甲基化酶及乙酰化酶活性,直接影响残余组蛋白的甲基化和乙酰化;还可以影响精子小RNA的表达,导致精子缺陷。本文就肥胖引起的表观遗传学改变及导致男性不育的作用机制做逐一综述。     

临床肾脏学中表观遗传学的研究

表观遗传学(Epigenetios)是研究不涉及DNA序列变化,表型却发生可遗传改变的一门不同于遗传学的新学科,其研究内容包括DNA甲基化和组蛋白修饰等几个方面,任何一方面的异常都可能影响染色质的结构与基因表达.慢性肾脏疾病(Chronic kidney disease,CKD)是一种复杂性综合疾病,它受到遗传因素和表观遗传修饰的双重影响.尿毒症患者炎症、血脂异常、高同型半胱氨酸血症、氧化应激水平都可能导致整体DNA甲基化异常.目前,对于CKD的研究尚处于初期,本文就CKD相关的表观遗传学研究作一综述.     

临床肾脏学中表观遗传学的研究

表观遗传学(Epigenetios)是研究不涉及DNA序列变化,表型却发生可遗传改变的一门不同于遗传学的新学科,其研究内容包括DNA甲基化和组蛋白修饰等几个方面,任何一方面的异常都可能影响染色质的结构与基因表达.慢性肾脏疾病(Chronic kidney disease,CKD)是一种复杂性综合疾病,它受到遗传因素和表观遗传修饰的双重影响.尿毒症患者炎症、血脂异常、高同型半胱氨酸血症、氧化应激水平都可能导致整体DNA甲基化异常.目前,对于CKD的研究尚处于初期,本文就CKD相关的表观遗传学研究作一综述.     

血管疾病的表观遗传学研究进展

表观遗传学指独立于DNA核苷酸序列本身的基因表达的可遗传改变,其主要机制包括DNA甲基化、组蛋白修饰和非编码RNA等,这些机制共同作用调控基因的特异性表达。血管疾病是由环境因素和遗传因素相互作用引发的一种慢性疾病。近年来,越来越多的研究证实表观遗传调节在血管疾病的发生发展中具有重要的作用。本文对表观遗传学在血管疾病中的最新研究进展进行综述。     

DNA甲基化和组蛋白修饰在肿瘤中的作用

在肿瘤的形成过程中包含两大类机制,基因机制(genetic mechanism)和表观基因机制(epigenetic mechanism).基因机制包括基因突变、染色体丢失和重排,产生结构异常的基因产物;表观基因机制主要指DNA5胞嘧啶甲基化,引起基因表达异常而DNA序列及基因产物不变.近几年来许多学者发现,组蛋白甲基化、乙酰化、磷酸化和泛素化等修饰导致染色质重构而抑制抑癌基因表达也是表观基因改变的一个重要机制.1999年,Alan Wolffe[1]将表观基因改变定义为"未发生DNA序列改变的可遗传的基因表达改变."     

The expanding role of epigenetics in the development, diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia

PURPOSE: Prostate cancer research has focused significant attention on the mutation, deletion or amplification of the DNA base sequence that encodes critical growth or suppressor genes. However, these changes have left significant gaps in our understanding of the development and progression of disease. It has become clear that epigenetic changes or modifications that influence phenotype without altering the genotype present a new and entirely different mechanism for gene regulation. Several interrelated epigenetic modifications that are altered in abnormal growth states are DNA methylation changes, histone modifications and genomic imprinting. We discuss the status of epigenetic alterations in prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia progression. In addition, the rationale and status of ongoing clinical trials altering epigenetic processes in urological diseases are reviewed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An online search of current and past peer reviewed literature on DNA methylation, histone acetylation and methylation, imprinting and epigenetics in prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia was performed. Relevant articles and reviews were examined and a synopsis of reproducible data was generated with the goal of informing the practicing urologist of these advances and their implications. RESULTS: Only 20 years ago the first study was published demonstrating global changes in DNA methylation patterns in tumors. Accumulating data have now identified specific genes that are commonly hypermethylated and inactivated during prostate cancer progression, including GSTpi, APC, MDR1, GPX3 and 14-3-3sigma. Altered histone modifications, including acetylation and methylation, were also recently described that may modify gene function, including androgen receptor function. These epigenetic changes are now being used to assist in prostate cancer diagnosis and cancer outcome prediction. Epigenetic changes appear to have a role in benign prostatic hyperplasia development as well as in the susceptibility of the prostate to developing cancer. Treatments involving 5-aza-deoxycytosine and other, more selective DNA methyltransferase inhibitors remove methyl residues from silenced genes, generating re-expression, and are currently being used in therapeutic trials. Histone deacetylase inhibitors have shown promise, not only by directly reactivating silenced genes, but also as regulators of apoptosis and sensitizers to radiation therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Evolving data support a significant role for epigenetic processes in the development of prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia. Epigenetic changes can predict tumor behavior and often distinguish between genetically identical tumors. Targeted drugs that alter epigenetic modifications hold promise as a tool for curing and preventing these diseases.     

神经病理性疼痛的表观遗传学发展方向

背景 神经病理性疼痛(neuropathic pain,NP)是由神经系统的损害或炎症引起的一种常见而特殊的慢性疼痛,以痛觉过敏、异常痛敏和自发痛为特征.目前发病机制不清,发病率逐年上升,处理非常棘手而且目前的治疗方法疗效不佳,是医学领域的挑战性研究课题. 目的 综述表观遗传学在疼痛中的研究状况. 内容 主要对表观遗传学的基本原理、生物学作用以及表观遗传学在疼痛中的研究进展进行综述. 趋向 表观遗传学在NP中的作用将为人们进一步深入阐明疼痛机制提供新的思路,为NP的治疗提供新的策略.     

Specific changes in the expression of imprinted genes in prostate cancer—implications for cancer progression and epigenetic regulation

Epigenetic dysregulation comprising DNA hypermethylation and hypomethylation, enhancer of zeste homologue 2 (EZH2) overexpression and altered patterns of histone modifications is associated with the progression of prostate cancer. DNA methylation, EZH2 and histone modifications also ensure the parental-specific monoallelic expression of at least 62 imprinted genes. Although it is therefore tempting to speculate that epigenetic dysregulation may extend to imprinted genes, expression changes in cancerous prostates are only well documented for insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2). A literature and database survey on imprinted genes in prostate cancer suggests that the expression of most imprinted genes remains unchanged despite global disturbances in epigenetic mechanisms. Instead, selective genetic and epigenetic changes appear to lead to the inactivation of a sub-network of imprinted genes, which might function in the prostate to limit cell growth induced via the PI3K/Akt pathway, modulate androgen responses and regulate differentiation. Whereas dysregulation of IGF2 may constitute an early change in prostate carcinogenesis, inactivation of this imprinted gene network is rather associated with cancer progression.     

The Epigenetic Landscape of Mammary Gland Development and Functional Differentiation

Most of the development and functional differentiation in the mammary gland occur after birth. Epigenetics is defined as the stable alterations in gene expression potential that arise during development and proliferation. Epigenetic changes are mediated at the biochemical level by the chromatin conformation initiated by DNA methylation, histone variants, post-translational modifications of histones, non-histone chromatin proteins, and non-coding RNAs. Epigenetics plays a key role in development. However, very little is known about its role in the developing mammary gland or how it might integrate the many signalling pathways involved in mammary gland development and function that have been discovered during the past few decades. An inverse relationship between marks of closed (DNA methylation) or open chromatin (DnaseI hypersensitivity, certain histone modifications) and milk protein gene expression has been documented. Recent studies have shown that during development and functional differentiation, both global and local chromatin changes occur. Locally, chromatin at distal regulatory elements and promoters of milk protein genes gains a more open conformation. Furthermore, changes occur both in looping between regulatory elements and attachment to nuclear matrix. These changes are induced by developmental signals and environmental conditions. Additionally, distinct epigenetic patterns have been identified in mammary gland stem and progenitor cell sub-populations. Together, these findings suggest that epigenetics plays a role in mammary development and function. With the new tools for epigenomics developed in recent years, we now can begin to establish a framework for the role of epigenetics in mammary gland development and disease.     

Epigenetic targets in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer

Prostate cancer (PC) is one of leading cause of cancer related deaths in men. Various aspects of cancer epigenetics are rapidly evolving and the role of 2 major epigenetic changes including DNA methylation and histone modifications in prostate cancer is being studied widely. The epigenetic changes are early event in the cancer development and are reversible. Novel epigenetic markers are being studied, which have the potential as sensitive diagnostic and prognostic marker. Variety of drugs targeting epigenetic changes are being studied, which can be effective individually or in combination with other conventional drugs in PC treatment. In this review, we discuss epigenetic changes associated with PC and their potential diagnostic and therapeutic applications including future areas of research.