Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 22, 2026

Methyl-binding DNA capture Sequencing for Patient Tissues
08:40

Methyl-binding DNA capture Sequencing for Patient Tissues

Published on: October 31, 2016

[Epigenetic changes in breast cancer shown by aberrant promoter methylation]

U Lehmann1, F Länger, G Celikkaya

  • 1Institut für Pathologie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover.

Zentralblatt Fur Gynakologie
|September 25, 2004
PubMed

Insights

Aberrant DNA methylation of growth-regulatory genes is a key mechanism in cancer development. Specific methylation patterns in breast cancer correlate with tumor grade and subtype.

Area of Science:

  • Epigenetics
  • Cancer Biology
  • Molecular Oncology

Context:

  • Aberrant methylation of cytosine residues in promoter regions is a crucial gene inactivation mechanism in cancer, alongside deletion and mutation.
  • This epigenetic silencing affects proliferation and differentiation pathways critical to cancer development and progression.
  • In breast cancer, epigenetic inactivation is a frequent and early event with significant gene-specific variations during disease progression.

Purpose:

  • To investigate the role of aberrant DNA methylation in cancer development and progression.
  • To analyze the occurrence and significance of specific aberrant methylation patterns in breast cancer.
  • To associate methylation patterns with histological grade and subtype of mammary carcinoma.

Summary:

  • Aberrant promoter methylation of growth-regulatory genes is an important mechanism for gene inactivation in cancer.
  • Epigenetic inactivation impacts key cellular pathways, including proliferation and differentiation, which are dysregulated in cancer.
  • Breast cancer frequently exhibits early epigenetic inactivation with distinct gene-specific methylation profiles that change during progression.

Impact:

  • Highlights aberrant methylation as a critical factor in cancer etiology and progression.
  • Establishes a link between specific epigenetic alterations and breast cancer characteristics.
  • Provides insights into potential epigenetic biomarkers for classifying breast cancer subtypes and grades.

Related Concept Videos

Epigenetic Regulation01:37

Epigenetic Regulation

Epigenetic changes alter the physical structure of the DNA without changing the genetic sequence and often regulate whether genes are turned on or off. This regulation ensures that each cell produces only proteins necessary for its function. For example, proteins that promote bone growth are not produced in muscle cells. Epigenetic mechanisms play an essential role in healthy development. Conversely, precisely regulated epigenetic mechanisms are disrupted in diseases like cancer.
X-chromosome...
Epigenetic Regulation01:46

Epigenetic Regulation

Epigenetic mechanisms play an essential role in healthy development. Conversely, precisely regulated epigenetic mechanisms are disrupted in diseases like cancer.
Abnormal Proliferation02:23

Abnormal Proliferation

Under normal conditions, most adult cells remain in a non-proliferative state unless stimulated by internal or external factors to replace lost cells. Abnormal cell proliferation is a condition in which the cell's growth exceeds and is uncoordinated with normal cells. In such situations, cell division persists in the same excessive manner even after cessation of the stimuli, leading to persistent tumors. The tumor arises from the damaged cells that replicate to pass the damage to the daughter...
Genomic Imprinting and Inheritance02:30

Genomic Imprinting and Inheritance

Diploid organisms inherit genetic material through chromosomes from both parents. Copies of the same gene are known as alleles. In most cases, both alleles are simultaneously expressed and allow various cellular processes to function optimally. If one of the alleles is missing or mutated, the expression of the other allele can compensate; however, this is not true for all genes.
The expression of some genes depends on which parent passed the gene to the offspring, through a phenomenon known as...
Spreading of Chromatin Modifications02:25

Spreading of Chromatin Modifications

The histone proteins in the nucleosomes are post-translationally modified (PTM) to increase or decrease access to DNA. The commonly observed PTMs are methylation, acetylation, phosphorylation, and ubiquitination of lysine amino acids in the histone H3 tail region. These histone modifications have specific meaning for the cell. Hence, they are called "histone code". The protein complex involved in histone modification is termed as "reader-writer" complex.
Writers
The writer is an enzyme that can...
Tumor Progression02:07

Tumor Progression

Tumor progression is a phenomenon where the pre-formed tumor acquires successive mutations to become clinically more aggressive and malignant. In the 1950s, Foulds first described the stepwise progression of cancer cells through successive stages.
Colon cancer is one of the best-documented examples of tumor progression. Early mutation in the APC gene in colon cells causes a small growth on the colon wall called a polyp. With time, this polyp grows into a benign, pre-cancerous tumor. Further...