Chromatin Mechanisms Driving Cancer

Abstract

The change in cell state from normal to malignant is driven fundamentally by oncogenic mutations in cooperation with epigenetic alterations of chromatin. These alterations in chromatin can be a consequence of environmental stressors or germline and/or somatic mutations that directly alter the structure of chromatin machinery proteins, their levels, or their regulatory function. These changes can result in an inability of the cell to differentiate along a predefined lineage path, or drive a hyperactive, highly proliferative state with addiction to high levels of transcriptional output. We discuss how these genetic alterations hijack the chromatin machinery for the oncogenic process to reveal unique vulnerabilities and novel targets for cancer therapy.