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Hereditas(Beijing) ›› 2020, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (9): 817-831.doi: 10.16288/j.yczz.20-097

• Review •     Next Articles

The identification of enhancers and its application in cancer studies

Qian Liu1, Chunyan Li1,2()   

  1. 1. Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Big Data-Based Precision Medicine & School of Medical Sciences and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China;
    2. Key Laboratory of Big Data-Based Precision Medicine (Beihang University), Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Beijing 100191, China;
  • Received:2020-04-09 Revised:2020-07-23 Online:2020-09-20 Published:2020-08-04
  • Contact: Li Chunyan E-mail:lichunyan@buaa.edu.cn
  • Supported by:
    Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China No(31801094)

Abstract:

Enhancers are a type of cis-acting DNA elements that enhance transcriptional activity of target genes. However, the uncertainty in the orientation and distance between enhancers and target genes could post significant difficulties in identifying the target genes and the regulatory mechanisms of the enhancers. Numerous studies have shown that the mutations and/or abnormalities in the functions of enhancers are associated with development of diseases. A few studies have reported that enhancers could activate cancer development or drug resistance by promoting the expression of target genes. At present, enhancers involved in carcinogenesis and drug resistance have not been fully identified, and the underlying mechanism are still largely unknown. This paper summarizes the main methods used in identifying and characterizing enhancers and analyzing the regulatory mechanism at the genome-wide level. It further reviews the recent research progress of enhancers in cancer diagnosis, treatment, and the underlying mechanism during carcinogenesis, thereby providing a reference for the screening of these enhancers involved in carcinogenesis and drug resistance and exploring their regulatory mechanisms of target genes. It also provides a new perspective for improving the diagnosis of cancer and insights for formulating cancer therapeutic strategies.

Key words: enhancer, super enhancer, identification, cancer