DNA Methylation: Biological Implications and Modulation of Its Aberrant Dysregulation

Abstract

The alteration of the DNA methylation pattern is often related to the onset of diseases based on epigenetic dysregulation, primarily cancer. In this scenery the development of DNA methyltransferase inhibitors is one of the most attractive challenges for anticancer therapy. The present chapter proposes a comprehensive classification of the DNA methyltransferase inhibitors known in literature, on the basis of their natural or synthetic nature and their mechanism of action.