Purpose of Review
In this review, we provide a brief overview of the impact of histone modifications on cancer metastasis and cancer chemoresistance and highlight the application of histone modifications as biomarker.
Recent Findings
Histones are the core components of nucleosome. The N-terminal “tail” with 20~35 amino acids extending from the surface of the nucleosome undergoes various post-translational modifications (PTMs) catalyzed by a series of histone-modifying enzymes. The alterations of the histone PTM patterns control gene expression and chromatin remodeling and further influence cell biological functions or cause diverse diseases. The histone PTMs are involved in DNA damage repair, carcinogenesis, cancer metastasis, and cancer therapy. Many histone modifications are potential biomarkers for cancer diagonosis, prognosis, and chemoradiotherapy.
Summary
Modification of histone controls its activity and regulates the chromatin structure and functions. The abnormal expression of enzymes catalyzing those modifications is related with cancer metastasis and drug resistance. Thus, these enzymes are regarded as the target for cancer treatments. Detection of changes in histone modification levels and more information about the function and mechanism of histone modification enzymes can provide useful information in better understanding the pathological processes of some diseases, enzyme-targeted drug discovery and development, and personalized medicine.