title: Epigenetic basis of cancer health disparities: Looking beyond genetic differences.
abstract: Despite efforts at various levels, racial health disparities still exist in cancer patients. These inequalities in incidence and/or clinical outcome can only be explained by a multitude of factors, with genetic basis being one of them. Several investigations have provided convincing evidence to support epigenetic regulation of cancer-associated genes, which results in the differential transcriptome and proteome, and may be linked to a pre-disposition of individuals of certain race/ethnicity to early or more aggressive cancers. Recent technological advancements and the ability to quickly analyze whole genome have aided in these efforts, and owing to their relatively easy detection, methylation events are much well-characterized, than the acetylation events, across human populations. The early trend of investigating a pre-determined set of genes for differential epigenetic regulation is paving way for more unbiased screening. This review summarizes our current understanding of the epigenetic events that have been tied to the racial differences in cancer incidence and mortality. A better understanding of the epigenetics of racial diversity holds promise for the design and execution of novel strategies targeting the human epigenome for reducing the disparity gaps.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncologic Sciences, Mitchell Cancer Institute, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA. Electronic address: aahmad@health.southalabama.edu.
authors.forename: Aamir
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ahmad
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncologic Sciences, Mitchell Cancer Institute, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA.
authors.forename: Shafquat
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Azim
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncologic Sciences, Mitchell Cancer Institute, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA.
authors.forename: Haseeb
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zubair
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncologic Sciences, Mitchell Cancer Institute, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA.
authors.forename: Mohammad Aslam
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncologic Sciences, Mitchell Cancer Institute, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA.
authors.forename: Seema
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Molecular Biology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA.
authors.forename: James E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Carter
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncologic Sciences, Mitchell Cancer Institute, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA.
authors.forename: Rodney P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Rocconi
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncologic Sciences, Mitchell Cancer Institute, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA. Electronic address: asingh@health.southalabama.edu.
authors.forename: Ajay P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Singh
mesh_terms: D000107:Acetylation; D000818:Animals; D019175:DNA Methylation / Q000235:genetics; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*; D020543:Proteome / Q000235:genetics; D059467:Transcriptome / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D020543:Proteome
keywords: Acetylation; Cancer; Epigenetics; Methylation; Racial disparity