New Insights Into the Epigenetic Regulation of Inflammatory Bowel Disease

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.

Genetic and Epigenetic Etiology of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: An Update

“…It probably plays a role in the pathogenesis of IBD, as certain environmental factors can influence the risk of developing IBD through epigenetic modifications, such as DNA methylation, post-translational modifications of histones, and the expression of noncoding RNAs [ 159 ]. Epigenetic mechanisms have been shown to play an important role in several fundamental biological processes, including cell differentiation, transcription of cell type-specific genes and cell function, and immune memory [ 160 ].…”

“…In the current literature, a developing research avenue is lncRNA, which plays an important role in the pathogenesis of IBD [ 195 , 196 , 197 , 198 ]. New reports indicate that interferon γ-antisense 1 ( IFNG-AS1 ), which is elevated in the intestinal mucosa of patients with IBD, is a mediator of the inflammatory signaling cascade in the pathophysiology of IBD [ 160 , 199 ].…”

Epigenetics in IBD: a conceptual framework for disease pathogenesis

“…Epigenetic marks can be heritable, enabling changes in the epigenome to be passed onto daughter cells during mitosis, or from one generation to the next—a phenomenon described as transgenerational epigenetic inheritance 11. A major role for epigenetic mechanisms has been demonstrated for several fundamental biological processes including cellular differentiation, cell-type-specific gene transcription and cellular function, as well as immunological memory 4 12 13. With technological advances enabling researchers to study epigenetics on a genome wide scale in high resolution, there is increasing evidence for the role of epigenetics is health and in a multitude of diseases, including those with complex processes such as cancers, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.…”

RNA Modification in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases

“…Although extensive efforts have been made to investigate epigenetic modifications in IBD to clarify how epigenetic mechanisms regulate IBD [ 74 ], little evidence of RNA modifications in IBD has accumulated. IBD-related cancers differ from those that harbor numerous mutations, i.e., deletions, insertions, or substitutions of nucleotide(s).…”