人类食管癌相关基因(ECRG4)是从人类食管上皮细胞内分离出来具有抑癌潜能的新基因，该基因在包括食管癌、乳腺癌，食管上皮鳞状细胞癌，前列腺癌，结直肠癌以及神经胶质细胞瘤等疾病中都有明显的下调。造成该基因表达下调的原因除了基因突变、基因缺失外，表观遗传修饰的作用更为普遍，而且后者导致的基因沉默可以通过药物逆转。本文综述了 ECRG4基因的功能研究及其异常甲基化与癌症发生发展关系的研究进展，有望为揭示肿瘤的发生机制提供新的思路，为肿瘤的预防、诊断、治疗提供新的靶点。% The esophageal carcinoma related gene 4(ECRG4) was separated from human esophageal epithelium, which as a novel tumor suppressor gene. And the expression of ECRG4 gene are obviously down-regulation in esophageal carcinoma, breast cancer, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, prostate cancer, colorectal carcinoma and glioma. The reasons of down-regulation expression of ECRG4, besides gene mutation and gene deletion, are epigenetic modification which is more prevalent. Therefore, the gene silencing caused by the latter result can be reversed through drug. In this review, the functional research process of ECRG4 gene and the relationship between ECRG4 abnormal methylation and the occurrence and development process of carcinoma are summarized, which are excepted to provide new ideas about the occurrencr mechanism of cancer, and also provide a new target for cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
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