Histone Modifiers in Cancer: Friends or Foes?

Overview

Journal Genes Cancer

Specialty Oncology

Date 2011 Sep 24

PMID 21941619

Citations 73

Authors

Idan Cohen

Elzbieta Poreba

Kinga Kamieniarz

Robert Schneider

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Covalent modifications of histones can regulate all DNA-dependent processes. In the last few years, it has become more and more evident that histone modifications are key players in the regulation of chromatin states and dynamics as well as in gene expression. Therefore, histone modifications and the enzymatic machineries that set them are crucial regulators that can control cellular proliferation, differentiation, plasticity, and malignancy processes. This review discusses the biology and biochemistry of covalent histone posttranslational modifications (PTMs) and evaluates the dual role of their modifiers in cancer: as oncogenes that can initiate and amplify tumorigenesis or as tumor suppressors.

Citing Articles

Pulmonary Hypertension: Molecular Mechanisms and Clinical Studies.

Adu-Amankwaah J, You Q, Liu X, Jiang J, Yang D, Liu K MedComm (2020). 2025; 6(3):e70134.

PMID: 40066229 PMC: 11892029. DOI: 10.1002/mco2.70134.

RSK2-mediated cGAS phosphorylation induces cGAS chromatin-incorporation-mediated cell transformation and cancer cell colony growth.

Chen W, Lee G, Jeung D, Byun J, Wu J, Li X Cell Death Discov. 2024; 10(1):442.

PMID: 39424777 PMC: 11492232. DOI: 10.1038/s41420-024-02208-8.

Fatty acids and epigenetics in health and diseases.

Chung M, Kim B Food Sci Biotechnol. 2024; 33(14):3153-3166.

PMID: 39328231 PMC: 11422405. DOI: 10.1007/s10068-024-01664-3.

The roles of histone modifications in tumorigenesis and associated inhibitors in cancer therapy.

Yang Y, Zhang M, Wang Y J Natl Cancer Cent. 2024; 2(4):277-290.

PMID: 39036551 PMC: 11256729. DOI: 10.1016/j.jncc.2022.09.002.

Microbial Metabolites-induced Epigenetic Modifications for Inhibition of Colorectal Cancer: Current Status and Future Perspectives.

Singh V, Shirbhate E, Kore R, Vishwakarma S, Parveen S, Veerasamy R Mini Rev Med Chem. 2024; 25(1):76-93.

PMID: 38982701 DOI: 10.2174/0113895575320344240625080555.

References

Couture J, Collazo E, Trievel R . Molecular recognition of histone H3 by the WD40 protein WDR5. Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2006; 13(8):698-703. DOI: 10.1038/nsmb1116. View

Baker S, Phillips J, Anderson S, Qiu Q, Shabanowitz J, Smith M . Histone H3 Thr 45 phosphorylation is a replication-associated post-translational modification in S. cerevisiae. Nat Cell Biol. 2010; 12(3):294-8. PMC: 2856316. DOI: 10.1038/ncb2030. View

Tamburini B, Tyler J . Localized histone acetylation and deacetylation triggered by the homologous recombination pathway of double-strand DNA repair. Mol Cell Biol. 2005; 25(12):4903-13. PMC: 1140608. DOI: 10.1128/MCB.25.12.4903-4913.2005. View

Rea S, Xouri G, Akhtar A . Males absent on the first (MOF): from flies to humans. Oncogene. 2007; 26(37):5385-94. DOI: 10.1038/sj.onc.1210607. View

Kouzarides T . Chromatin modifications and their function. Cell. 2007; 128(4):693-705. DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2007.02.005. View

Boggs B, Allis C, Chinault A . Immunofluorescent studies of human chromosomes with antibodies against phosphorylated H1 histone. Chromosoma. 2000; 108(8):485-90. DOI: 10.1007/s004120050400. View

Krishnamoorthy T, Chen X, Govin J, Cheung W, Dorsey J, Schindler K . Phosphorylation of histone H4 Ser1 regulates sporulation in yeast and is conserved in fly and mouse spermatogenesis. Genes Dev. 2006; 20(18):2580-92. PMC: 1578680. DOI: 10.1101/gad.1457006. View

Krivtsov A, Armstrong S . MLL translocations, histone modifications and leukaemia stem-cell development. Nat Rev Cancer. 2007; 7(11):823-33. DOI: 10.1038/nrc2253. View

Garcia-Cao M, OSullivan R, Peters A, Jenuwein T, Blasco M . Epigenetic regulation of telomere length in mammalian cells by the Suv39h1 and Suv39h2 histone methyltransferases. Nat Genet. 2004; 36(1):94-9. DOI: 10.1038/ng1278. View

10.

Fujii S, Ito K, Ito Y, Ochiai A . Enhancer of zeste homologue 2 (EZH2) down-regulates RUNX3 by increasing histone H3 methylation. J Biol Chem. 2008; 283(25):17324-32. PMC: 2427338. DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M800224200. View

11.

Ernst P, Fisher J, Avery W, Wade S, Foy D, Korsmeyer S . Definitive hematopoiesis requires the mixed-lineage leukemia gene. Dev Cell. 2004; 6(3):437-43. DOI: 10.1016/s1534-5807(04)00061-9. View

12.

Tomita A, Towatari M, Tsuzuki S, Hayakawa F, Kosugi H, Tamai K . c-Myb acetylation at the carboxyl-terminal conserved domain by transcriptional co-activator p300. Oncogene. 2000; 19(3):444-51. DOI: 10.1038/sj.onc.1203329. View

13.

Fernandez-Capetillo O, Chen H, Celeste A, Ward I, Romanienko P, Morales J . DNA damage-induced G2-M checkpoint activation by histone H2AX and 53BP1. Nat Cell Biol. 2002; 4(12):993-7. DOI: 10.1038/ncb884. View

14.

Daujat S, Zeissler U, Waldmann T, Happel N, Schneider R . HP1 binds specifically to Lys26-methylated histone H1.4, whereas simultaneous Ser27 phosphorylation blocks HP1 binding. J Biol Chem. 2005; 280(45):38090-5. DOI: 10.1074/jbc.C500229200. View

15.

Bradbury E, Inglis R, Matthews H . Control of cell division by very lysine rich histone (F1) phosphorylation. Nature. 1974; 247(5439):257-61. DOI: 10.1038/247257a0. View

16.

Tachibana M, Sugimoto K, Nozaki M, Ueda J, Ohta T, Ohki M . G9a histone methyltransferase plays a dominant role in euchromatic histone H3 lysine 9 methylation and is essential for early embryogenesis. Genes Dev. 2002; 16(14):1779-91. PMC: 186403. DOI: 10.1101/gad.989402. View

17.

Huang J, Berger S . The emerging field of dynamic lysine methylation of non-histone proteins. Curr Opin Genet Dev. 2008; 18(2):152-8. DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2008.01.012. View

18.

Yu B, Hess J, Horning S, Brown G, Korsmeyer S . Altered Hox expression and segmental identity in Mll-mutant mice. Nature. 1995; 378(6556):505-8. DOI: 10.1038/378505a0. View

19.

Ayton P, Cleary M . Transformation of myeloid progenitors by MLL oncoproteins is dependent on Hoxa7 and Hoxa9. Genes Dev. 2003; 17(18):2298-307. PMC: 196466. DOI: 10.1101/gad.1111603. View

20.

Wu H, Chen X, Xiong J, Li Y, Li H, Ding X . Histone methyltransferase G9a contributes to H3K27 methylation in vivo. Cell Res. 2010; 21(2):365-7. PMC: 3193445. DOI: 10.1038/cr.2010.157. View