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Review
. 2011 Jul 7;585(13):2078-86.
doi: 10.1016/j.febslet.2010.12.001. Epub 2010 Dec 10.

Dissecting DNA hypermethylation in cancer

Marcos R H Estécio  1 , Jean-Pierre J Issa
Affiliations
Review

Dissecting DNA hypermethylation in cancer

Marcos R H Estécio et al. FEBS Lett. .

Abstract

There is compelling evidence to support the importance of DNA methylation alterations in cancer development. Both losses and gains of DNA methylation are observed, thought to contribute pathophysiologically by inactivating tumor suppressor genes, inducing chromosomal instability and ectopically activating gene expression. Lesser known are the causes of aberrant DNA methylation. Recent studies have pointed out that intrinsic gene susceptibility to DNA methylation, environmental factors and gene function all have an intertwined participation in this process. Overall, these data support a deterministic rather than a stochastic mechanism for de novo DNA methylation in cancer. In this review article, we discuss the technologies available to study DNA methylation and the endogenous and exogenous factors that influence the onset of de novo methylation in cancer.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Graphic representation of the different compartments where DNA methylation occurs in relation to CpG islands and genes. For clarity, only SINE and LINE retrotransposons are shown in the figure to represent the repetitive DNA compartment.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Factors that influence de novo DNA methylation in cancer.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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