Epigenetics of Prostate Cancer and the Prospect of Identification of Novel Drug Targets by RNAi Screening of Epigenetic Enzymes

Abstract

Alterations in epigenetic processes probably underlie most human malignancies. Novel genome-wide techniques, such as chromatin immunoprecipitation and high-throughput sequencing, have become state-of-the-art methods to map the epigenomic landscape of development and disease, such as in cancers. Despite these advances, the functional significance of epigenetic enzymes in cancer progression, such as prostate cancer, remain incompletely understood. A comprehensive mapping and functional understanding of the cancer epigenome will hopefully help to facilitate development of novel cancer therapy targets and improve future diagnostics. The authors have developed a novel cell microarray-based high-content siRNA screening technique suitable to address the putative functional role and impact of all known putative and novel epigenetic enzymes in cancer, including prostate cancer.

KEYWORDS::

• cell microarray technology
• epigenetic
• high-throughput screening
• HTS
• PrCa
• prostate cancer
• siRNA

Financial & competing interests disclosure

Grant support was received from EU-EPITRON (LSHC-CT-2005-518417), Marie Curie Canceromics (MEXT-CT-2003-2728), Academy of Finland, Cancer Organizations Finland and the Sigrid Juselius Foundation. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

Grant support was received from EU-EPITRON (LSHC-CT-2005-518417), Marie Curie Canceromics (MEXT-CT-2003-2728), Academy of Finland, Cancer Organizations Finland and the Sigrid Juselius Foundation. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed. No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.