About this Research Topic
Several viruses are involved in human carcinogenesis including: human papillomavirus (HPV) in cervical cancer; hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) in hepatocellular carcinoma; Epstein Barr virus (EBV) in Burkitt’s lymphoma, nasopharyngeal cancer and possibly Hodgkin’s lymphoma and gastric cancer; and human herpes virus-8 (HHV-8) in Kaposi’s sarcoma. Although regulators and transcription factors (TFs) in human tissues may be involved in epigenetic rewiring (DNA methylation and histone modifications) leading cancer pathogenesis, these mechanisms are not fully understood. Moreover, besides gastric cancer, there is known role of EBV in altering the host gene regulatory program in the autoimmunity, with the help of human transcription factors. Therefore, there is need for further studies elucidating the role of viral encoded proteins and/or their interaction with the host genome and/or epigenome regulatory machinery in inducing cancer-associated epigenetic rewiring. Understanding this epigenetic rewiring will not only be useful for understanding cancer pathogenesis but will help in viral/cancer/disease therapeutics.
The Research Topic aims to advance the knowledge of Epigenetic/Epigenomic rewiring in cancers caused by viruses, including but not limited to HPV, HBV, HCV, EBV, HHV-8. Specifically, we would like to:
• Identify poised enhancers activated in genomes that play a role in human cancer pathogenesis
• Alterations in human non-coding genome caused by viruses that lead to cancer pathogenesis
• Understand the transcriptional reprogramming mechanisms and altered epigenetic regulators programs in human cancers caused by viruses
• Viral mediated changes in chromatin accessibility landscape, associated pioneer TFs and downstream TFs altering the cell state. It is not necessary to show the altered cell state as transformed or tumorous, but should clearly elucidate implications that could explain cancer epigenetic landscape
• Immune cell epigenetic landscape differentiating patients, which recovered from cancer vs where outcomes were not favourable
• Vaccines/Drugs focused on epigenetic therapy that revert the Epigenetic/Epigenomic rewiring in human cancer caused by viruses
The Research Topic aims to advance the knowledge of Epigenetic/Epigenomic rewiring in cancers caused by viruses, including but not limited to HPV, HBV, HCV, EBV, HHV-8. Specifically, we would like to:
• Identify poised enhancers activated in genomes that play a role in human cancer pathogenesis
• Alterations in human non-coding genome caused by viruses that lead to cancer pathogenesis
• Understand the transcriptional reprogramming mechanisms and altered epigenetic regulators programs in human cancers caused by viruses
• Viral mediated changes in chromatin accessibility landscape, associated pioneer TFs and downstream TFs altering the cell state. It is not necessary to show the altered cell state as transformed or tumorous, but should clearly elucidate implications that could explain cancer epigenetic landscape
• Immune cell epigenetic landscape differentiating patients, which recovered from cancer vs where outcomes were not favourable
• Vaccines/Drugs focused on epigenetic therapy that revert the Epigenetic/Epigenomic rewiring in human cancer caused by viruses
Keywords: Epigenetics, Epigenomics, Cancers, Viruses, Transcription Factors, Vaccine, Reprogramming, DNA methylation, histone modifications, Chromatin, Drugs, Vaccines
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
