Epigenetic dynamics of aging and cancer development: current concepts from studies mapping aging and cancer epigenomes.

Purpose Of Review: This review emphasizes the role of epigenetic processes as incidental changes occurring during aging, which, in turn, promote the development of cancer.

Recent Findings: Aging is a complex biological process associated with the progressive deterioration of normal physiological functions, making age a significant risk factor for various disorders, including cancer. The increasing longevity of the population has made cancer a global burden, as the risk of developing most cancers increases with age due to the cumulative effect of exposure to environmental carcinogens and DNA replication errors.

Tissue-location-specific transcription programs drive tumor dependencies in colon cancer.

Cancers of the same tissue-type but in anatomically distinct locations exhibit different molecular dependencies for tumorigenesis. Proximal and distal colon cancers exemplify such characteristics, with BRAF predominantly occurring in proximal colon cancers along with increased DNA methylation phenotype. Using mouse colon organoids, here we show that proximal and distal colon stem cells have distinct transcriptional programs that regulate stemness and differentiation.

Identification of novel genes by targeted exome sequencing in Retinoblastoma.

Background: Retinoblastoma (RB) is initiated by mutation in both alleles of gene. However, few cases may occur even in the absence of mutation suggesting the role of genes other than .

Methodology: The current study was planned to utilize targeted exome sequencing in Indian RB patients affected with unilateral non-familial RB.

Sperm methylome alterations following yoga-based lifestyle intervention in patients of primary male infertility: A pilot study.

A majority of the cases of primary male infertility are idiopathic with the underlying molecular mechanisms contributing to the pathophysiology as yet unknown. Effects of the environment can alter the sperm epigenome thereby impacting male reproductive health. Epigenetic mechanisms are crucial to understanding health and disease, and methylome alterations are now known to have far-reaching clinical implications.

Impact of yoga based lifestyle intervention on psychological stress and quality of life in the parents of children with retinoblastoma.

Background: Childhood cancers are associated with a psychological burden to the parents and hence, decline their mental and physical health and overall quality of life.

Purpose: The purpose of the present study is to investigate the impact of 12-weeks yoga based lifestyle intervention on psychological stress and quality of life in the parents of children affected with retinoblastoma.

Method: Single arm prospective clinical trial conducted from October 2015 to October 2017 at the Laboratory for Molecular Reproduction and Genetics, Department of Anatomy, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India.

Oxidative Stress and Polymorphism in SNPs (677 and 1298) in Paternal Sperm DNA is Associated with an Increased Risk of Retinoblastoma in Their Children: A Case-Control Study.

Sperm DNA is considered as the most vulnerable to oxidative stress-induced damage that also impairs global sperm DNA methylation leading to sperm-associated pathologies. C677T and A1298C polymorphisms of the methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase gene affect MTHFR enzyme activity. This study was planned as a case-control study to determine the gene polymorphisms in the fathers of children affected with sporadic nonfamilial heritable retinoblastoma in an Indian population.

Oxidative stress and male infertility.

DNA damage, largely owing to oxidative stress, is a leading cause of defective sperm function. High levels of oxidative stress result in damage to sperm DNA, RNA transcripts, and telomeres and, therefore might provide a common underlying aetiology of male infertility and recurrent pregnancy loss, in addition to congenital malformations, complex neuropsychiatric disorders, and childhood cancers in children fathered by men with defective sperm cells. Spermatozoa are highly vulnerable to oxidative stress owing to limited levels of antioxidant defence and a single, limited DNA-damage detection and repair mechanism.

Oxidative stress: Major executioner in disease pathology, role in sperm DNA damage and preventive strategies.

Oxidative stress (OS) has been implicated in a wide array of diseases such as neurodegenerative disorders, autoimmune diseases, complex lifestyle diseases and cancer. OS is caused by an imbalance in production of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) and antioxidant defenses in the cell which results in the damage of cellular components, inactivate essential metabolic enzymes and disrupt signal transduction pathways. OS induces peroxidative damage to the sperm plasma membrane, DNA fragmentation in sperm nuclear/mitochondrial genome and causes dysregulation in levels of mRNAs/transcripts.

Oxidative Stress Induced Damage to Paternal Genome and Impact of Meditation and Yoga - Can it Reduce Incidence of Childhood Cancer?

Background: Sperm DNA damage is underlying aetiology of poor implantation and pregnancy rates but also affects health of offspring and may also result in denovo mutations in germ line and post fertilization. This may result in complex diseases, polygenic disorders and childhood cancers. Childhood cancer like retinoblastoma (RB) is more prevalent in developing countries and the incidence of RB has increased more than three fold in India in the last decade.

Tobacco Use Increases Oxidative DNA Damage in Sperm - Possible Etiology of Childhood Cancer.

Background: Cigarette smoking and tobacco chewing are common modes of consuming tobacco all over the world. Parents need to be aware that germ cell integrity is vital for birth of healthy offspring as biological parenting begins much before birth of a child and even before conception. The present study was conducted to determine the etiology of non-familial sporadic heritable retinoblastoma (NFSHRb), by evaluating oxidative sperm DNA damage in fathers due to use of tobacco (smoking and chewing).