Suijkerbuijk K P M, van der Wall E, van Laar T, Vooijs M, van Diest P J
Afd. Pathologie, Universitair Medisch Centrum Utrecht, Postbus 85.500, 3508 GA Utrecht.
Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd. 2007 Apr 21;151(16):907-13.
Defects in DNA that activate oncogenes or inactivate tumour-suppressor genes are regarded as a crucial step in tumour development. Understanding the processes that modulate gene activity, the so-called epigenetic processes, is gaining importance in the search for factors responsible for uncontrolled cell growth. Cell proliferation is determined by epigenetic and genetic processes. Abnormal patterns of methylation and other epigenetic processes, such as acetylation, nucleosome formation and compact chromatin structure, can suppress transcription and inactivate tumour-suppressor genes. Methylation status is a promising biomarker for malignancy because the process is not patient-specific, it occurs at an early stage oftumour development and may precede morphological changes.
激活癌基因或使肿瘤抑制基因失活的DNA缺陷被视为肿瘤发展的关键步骤。了解调节基因活性的过程，即所谓的表观遗传过程，在寻找导致细胞不受控制生长的因素方面变得越来越重要。细胞增殖由表观遗传和遗传过程决定。甲基化和其他表观遗传过程（如乙酰化、核小体形成和紧密染色质结构）的异常模式可抑制转录并使肿瘤抑制基因失活。甲基化状态是一种很有前景的恶性肿瘤生物标志物，因为该过程不是患者特异性的，它发生在肿瘤发展的早期，可能先于形态学变化。
