Epigenetic regulation was first studied in the 1970s and has quickly gained global interest. It is involved at many different stages of mammalian cell development. The broad nature of epigenetic regulation has led to it being referred to as an ‘all stage’ mechanism of regulation as it is implicated in many developmental stages including embryonic development, ageing and in cancer progression. The term ‘epigenetic’ refers to the alteration of gene expression without changing the genomic sequence. Epigenetic regulation involves the main subtypes of DNA methylation and histone modification, and microRNA expression. Epigenetic alteration is used by mammalian cells to ‘turn-on and -off’ the gene expression. During embryonic development this process is used to induce cell apoptosis of genes that are no longer useful. During cancer development, epigenetics works to repress tumour suppressor gene expression and activate oncogene expression. The stability and sustainability for the detection of epigenetic markers make it an attractive area for biomarker and drug discovery. In this book chapter we will discuss the key epigenetic processes involved in mammalian cell development and disease progression, specifically in cancer.
Part of the book: Gene Expression and Regulation in Mammalian Cells