KDM6 Demethylases and Their Roles in Human Cancers

Chunyan Hua; Jiaqing Chen; Shuting Li; Jianan Zhou; Jiahong Fu; Weijian Sun; Wenqian Wang

doi:10.3389/fonc.2021.779918

KDM6 Demethylases and Their Roles in Human Cancers

Front Oncol. 2021 Dec 7:11:779918. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2021.779918. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Chunyan Hua¹, Jiaqing Chen², Shuting Li², Jianan Zhou², Jiahong Fu², Weijian Sun³, Wenqian Wang³

Affiliations

¹ School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China.
² Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China.
³ Department of Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children's Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China.

Abstract

Cancer therapy is moving beyond traditional chemotherapy to include epigenetic approaches. KDM6 demethylases are dynamic regulation of gene expression by histone demethylation in response to diverse stimuli, and thus their dysregulation has been observed in various cancers. In this review, we first briefly introduce structural features of KDM6 subfamily, and then discuss the regulation of KDM6, which involves the coordinated control between cellular metabolism (intrinsic regulators) and tumor microenvironment (extrinsic stimuli). We further describe the aberrant functions of KDM6 in human cancers, acting as either a tumor suppressor or an oncoprotein in a context-dependent manner. Finally, we propose potential therapy of KDM6 enzymes based on their structural features, epigenetics, and immunomodulatory mechanisms, providing novel insights for prevention and treatment of cancers.

Keywords: KDM6; cancer; cancer therapy; epigenetics; histone demethylase.

Publication types

Review