New Insights Into the Epigenetic Regulation of Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Jing Xu; Hao-Ming Xu; Mei-Feng Yang; Yu-Jie Liang; Quan-Zhou Peng; Yuan Zhang; Cheng-Mei Tian; Li-Sheng Wang; Jun Yao; Yu-Qiang Nie; De-Feng Li

doi:10.3389/fphar.2022.813659

New Insights Into the Epigenetic Regulation of Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Front Pharmacol. 2022 Jan 31:13:813659. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2022.813659. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Jing Xu¹, Hao-Ming Xu¹, Mei-Feng Yang², Yu-Jie Liang³, Quan-Zhou Peng⁴, Yuan Zhang⁵, Cheng-Mei Tian⁶, Li-Sheng Wang⁷, Jun Yao⁷, Yu-Qiang Nie¹, De-Feng Li⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Guangzhou Digestive Disease Center, Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China.
² Department of Hematology, Yantian District People's Hospital, Shenzhen, China.
³ Shenzhen Kangning Hospital, Shenzhen, China.
⁴ Department of Pathology, Shenzhen People's Hospital (The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology), Shenzhen, China.
⁵ Department of Medical Administration, Huizhou Institute of Occupational Diseases Control and Prevention, Huizhou, China.
⁶ Department of Emergency, Shenzhen People's Hospital (The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology), Shenzhen, China.
⁷ Department of Gastroenterology, Shenzhen People's Hospital (The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology), Shenzhen, China.

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the colonic mucosa. Environmental factors, genetics, intestinal microbiota, and the immune system are all involved in the pathophysiology of IBD. Lately, accumulating evidence has shown that abnormal epigenetic changes in DNA methylation, histone markers, and non-coding RNA expression greatly contribute to the development of the entire disease. Epigenetics regulates many functions, such as maintaining the homeostasis of the intestinal epithelium and regulating the immune system of the immune cells. In the present study, we systematically summarized the latest advances in epigenetic modification of IBD and how epigenetics reveals new mechanisms of IBD. Our present review provided new insights into the pathophysiology of IBD. Moreover, exploring the patterns of DNA methylation and histone modification through epigenetics can not only be used as biomarkers of IBD but also as a new target for therapeutic intervention in IBD patients.

Keywords: DNA methylation; epigenetics; histone modifications; inflammatory; inflammatory bowel disease; miRNA.

Publication types

Review