Laryngeal cancer, which is mainly consisted of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma(LSCC), is one of the common neoplasms in head and neck. In spite the advantages in diagnose and treatment, the mortality of LSCC is still high in the past 20 years. Epigenetic regulations play a important role in LSCC. The aim of this review is to provide an update on the epigenetic regulations in LSCC, such as the methylation of chromatin, the pre- and post-regulation of transcription by microRNAs and/or long noncoding RNAs. The gene methylation can represses the expression of genes, and some histone and DNA methylation are associated with LSCC. Histone deacetylases also play a role in LSCC. MicroRNAs are about 22 nt in length, which inhibit or facilite the occurrence and development of LSCC by different mechanisms.Long noncoding RNAs(lncRNAs) , more than 200 nt in length, can modulate the LSCC in different levels, such as gene methylation modification, microRNA regulation. Based on the differences of epigenetic regulation, some characteristics may serve as markers of diagnose, and even facilitate the treatment of LSCC.
Keywords: DNA methylation; epigenetic regulation; laryngeal neoplasms; long noncoding RNA; microRNA; squamous cell carcinoma.
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