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Updated: Sep 26, 2025

Author Spotlight: Exploring Cellular Zinc Regulation Through ZnT1 Functionality
Published on: June 2, 2023
The Role of Zinc Finger Proteins in Various Oral Conditions
Rupali Agnihotri1, Sumit Gaur2
1Department of Periodontology, Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Manipal 576104, Karnataka, India.
Abstract:
The zinc finger proteins (ZNFs) are essential transcription factors, and the genes encoding them constitute about 3% of the entire human genome. They are involved in the development of several tissues, and any alterations in their structure may promote chronic conditions like diabetes and tumorigenesis. Lately, their role in the development, progression, and metastasis of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma (OSCC), Epithelial Dysplasia, Oral Lichen Planus, and Periodontitis has been found. The present review aims to describe their role in various oral conditions. Electronic databases like Medline (PubMed) and Scopus were searched for original studies related to the role of ZNFs in various oral conditions. It yielded 48 studies included in the review. It was found that the ZNFs influenced chronic conditions like Oral Cancer and Periodontitis. They act both as tumor suppressors and oncogenes and have an anti-inflammatory effect. The knowledge from the present review may be utilized in designing drugs that prevent unusual expression of specific ZNFs. Besides, they may be applied as prognostic markers due to their high expression specificity in some tumors.
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