DNA methylation, microRNAs, and their crosstalk as potential biomarkers in hepatocellular carcinoma.

ABSTRACT: Epigenetic alterations have been identified as a major characteristic in human cancers. Advances in the field of epigenetics have contributed significantly in refining our knowledge of molecular mechanisms underlying malignant transformation. DNA methylation and microRNA expression are epigenetic mechanisms that are widely altered in human cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the third leading cause of cancer related mortality worldwide. Both DNA methylation and microRNA expression patterns are regulated in developmental stage specific-, cell type specific- and tissue-specific manner. The aberrations are inferred in the maintenance of cancer stem cells and in clonal cell evolution during carcinogenesis. The availability of genome-wide technologies for DNA methylation and micro

SUBMITTER: Anwar SL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4069317 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature