Environmental toxicants such as toxic metals can alter epigenetic regulatory features such as DNA methylation, histone modification, and non-coding RNA expression. Heavy metals influence gene expression by epigenetic mechanisms and by directly binding to various metal response elements in the target gene promoters. Given the role of epigenetic alterations in regulating genes, there is potential for the integration of toxic metal-induced epigenetic alterations as informative factors in the risk assessment process. Here, we focus on recent advances in understanding epigenetic changes, gene expression, and biological effects induced by toxic metals.
Keywords: DNA methylation; Environmental exposure; Epigenetics; Gene expression; Heavy metal; Histone modification; Noncoding RNA.