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REVIEW article

Front. Immunol.
Sec. Cancer Immunity and Immunotherapy
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1495221
This article is part of the Research Topic Community Series in Post-Translational Modifications of Proteins in Cancer Immunity and Immunotherapy, Volume III View all 7 articles

The Role of Histone Post-translational Modifications in Cancer and Cancer Immunity: Functions, Mechanisms and Therapeutic Implications

Provisionally accepted
Xiaohong Duan Xiaohong Duan 1,2,3Zhiyao Xing Zhiyao Xing 4,5,6Lu Qiao Lu Qiao 7Shan Qin Shan Qin 6,8Xuejing Zhao Xuejing Zhao 6,8Yanhua Gong Yanhua Gong 1,2,3*Xueren Li Xueren Li 4,5*
  • 1 School of Disaster and Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Tianjin University, No. 92 Weijin Road, Nankai District, Tianjin, 300072, China, Tianjin, China
  • 2 Institute of Disaster and Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Tianjin University, China, Tianjin, China
  • 3 Medical School, Faculty of Medicine, Tianjin University, China, Tianjin, China
  • 4 Department of Respiratory Medicine, Tianjin Jinnan Hospital, Tianjin300052, China, Tianjin, China
  • 5 Department of Respiratory Medicine, Jinnan Hospital, Tianjin University, China., Tianjin, China
  • 6 Tianjin University and Health-Biotech United Group Joint Laboratory of Innovative Drug Development and Translational Medicine, School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology,Faculty of Medicine, Tianjin, China
  • 7 Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China, Tianjin, China
  • 8 School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Faculty of Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China, Tianjin, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Histones play crucial roles in both promoting and repressing gene expression, primarily regulated through post-translational modifications (PTMs) at specific amino acid residues. Histone PTMs, including methylation, acetylation, ubiquitination, phosphorylation, lactylation, butyrylation, and propionylation, act as important epigenetic markers. These modifications influence not only chromatin compaction but also gene expression. Their importance extends to the treatment and prevention of various human diseases, particularly cancer, due to their involvement in key cellular processes. Abnormal histone modifications and the enzymes responsible for these alterations often serve as critical drivers in tumor cell proliferation, invasion, apoptosis, and stemness. This review introduces key histone PTMs and the enzymes responsible for these modifications, examining their impact on tumorigenesis and cancer progression. Furthermore, it explores therapeutic strategies targeting histone PTMs and offers recommendations for identifying new potential therapeutic targets.

    Keywords: histone PTMs, Methylation, Acetylation, HMTs, KDMs, HDAC, Cancer

    Received: 12 Sep 2024; Accepted: 18 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Duan, Xing, Qiao, Qin, Zhao, Gong and Li. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Yanhua Gong, School of Disaster and Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Tianjin University, No. 92 Weijin Road, Nankai District, Tianjin, 300072, China, Tianjin, China
    Xueren Li, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Jinnan Hospital, Tianjin University, China., Tianjin, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.