Chromatin structure related to oncogenesis

Abstract

Chromatin is the fundamental structure of genomic DNA in eukaryotic cells. The nucleosome, the primary unit of chromatin, consists of DNA and histone proteins, and is important for the maintenance of genomic DNA. Histone mutations are present in many types of cancers, suggesting that chromatin and/or nucleosome structures could be closely related to cancer development. Histone modifications and histone variants are also involved in regulating chromatin and nucleosome structures. Chromatin structures are dynamically changed by nucleosome binding proteins. In this review article, we discuss the current progress toward understanding the relationship between chromatin structure and cancer development.