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Updated: Aug 22, 2025

Repressing Gene Transcription by Redirecting Cellular Machinery with Chemical Epigenetic Modifiers
Published on: September 20, 2018
Epigenetic-Mediated Regulation of Gene Expression for Biological Control and Cancer: Cell and Tissue Structure,
Andrew J Fritz1, Mohammed El Dika1, Rabail H Toor1
1Department of Biochemistry, Larner College of Medicine, UVM Cancer Center, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA.
Abstract:
Epigenetic gene regulatory mechanisms play a central role in the biological control of cell and tissue structure, function, and phenotype. Identification of epigenetic dysregulation in cancer provides mechanistic into tumor initiation and progression and may prove valuable for a variety of clinical applications. We present an overview of epigenetically driven mechanisms that are obligatory for physiological regulation and parameters of epigenetic control that are modified in tumor cells. The interrelationship between nuclear structure and function is not mutually exclusive but synergistic. We explore concepts influencing the maintenance of chromatin structures, including phase separation, recognition signals, factors that mediate enhancer-promoter looping, and insulation and how these are altered during the cell cycle and in cancer. Understanding how these processes are altered in cancer provides a potential for advancing capabilities for the diagnosis and identification of novel therapeutic targets.
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