Alterations of global histone H4K20 methylation during prostate carcinogenesis.

Background: Global histone modifications have been implicated in the progression of various tumour entities. Our study was designed to assess global methylation levels of histone 4 lysine 20 (H4K20me1-3) at different stages of prostate cancer (PCA) carcinogenesis.

Methods: Global H4K20 methylation levels were evaluated using a tissue microarray in patients with clinically localized PCA (n = 113), non-malignant prostate disease (n = 27), metastatic hormone-naive PCA (mPCA, n = 30) and castration-resistant PCA (CRPC, n = 34).

Global histone H3K27 methylation levels are different in localized and metastatic prostate cancer.

Global histone modification patterns have been shown to be a predictive factor of recurrence in various cancers. We analyzed global histone-3-lysine-27 (H3K27) methylation in prostate cancer (PCA) tissues. H3K27 mono-, di-, and tri-methylation patterns were different in nonmalignant prostate tissue, localized PCA, metastatic PCA, and castration-resistant PCA.

Global levels of histone modifications predict prostate cancer recurrence.

Purpose: Epigenetic alterations such as DNA methylation and histone modifications play important roles in carcinogenesis. It was reported that global histone modification patterns are predictors of cancer recurrence in various tumor entities. Our study was performed to evaluate histone lysine (H(x)K(y)) and histone acetyl (H(x)Ac) modifications in prostate tissue.