Influences of Epigenetics on Cancer
Introduction
Cancer before epigenetics
History of cancer. Cancer is characterized by an out of control growth of tissues within one’s body. These cells are known as a mutated tissue cells, and these resulted in a new replication patterns. The word cancer was derived from the term carinas and carcinoma to describe non-ulcer forming or ulcer-forming tumors by the Greek physician Hippocrates (460-370 B.C). Studies over the centuries have been trying to determine the derivatives of the mutated cells being that cancer dates back to about 3000 B.C. in Egypt (American Cancer Society, 2016). It had been proposed that the cells were a result of unbalanced humors, lymph theory, blastemal theory, chronic irritation, …show more content…
Modern developments have deemed that cancer is caused by viral and chemical carcinogens. In 1915, researchers at the University of Tokyo, produced cancer in the lab by applying coal tar to an animal’s skin, which proved that cancer was caused by chemical carcinogens (American Cancer Society, 2016). The World Health Organization (WHO) has since identified 100 chemicals, physical, and biological carcinogens that cause the development of cancer (American Cancer Society, 2016). Despite the fact of carcinogens, families had cancers that were passed from generation to generation that were soon discovered to have a genetic basis. In 1970, scientist revealed two genes that were related to cancer known as oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes (American Cancer Society, 2016). Oncogenes are gene that cause out of control cell growth that become cancerous. Tumor suppressor genes, are genes that slow down the cellular division that leads to errors in DNA repair, which prevents the cells from inducing apoptosis (You & Jones, 2012). Yearly, cancer causes 8.1 million deaths worldwide, and 14 million new cases arise. Currently, there are treatments …show more content…
The immune system is in a delicate balance with all other systems of the body. When the body is chronically stressed an amplified activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which controls the impairment of the immune response. This impacts the occurrence and advancement of different classes of cancer development. These increased reactions cause amplified neurosensory signals to be formed in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus and in the locus coeruleus-noradrenergic centre. In response, the hypothalamus emits cortcotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and arginine vasopression, which triggers the HPA axis, controlling the release of pituitary peptides manufactured by differential cleavage of pro-opiomelanocortin, particularly by adrenocorticotrophic hormone, encephalin, and endorphins. Adrenocorticotrophic hormone prompts downstream delivery of glucocorticoids from the adrenal cortex. The initiation of the sympathetic nervous system by CRF is facilitated by direct innervation of the locus coeruleus in the brainstem, which proceeds widespread release of norepinephrine throughout the brain and peripheral tissues. All of these reactions cause a feedback mechanism leading to increased release of corticosteroids that have the ability to cause immunosuppression (Reiche, Vargas Nunes, & Kaminami Morimoto, 2004). The immune system has cells that are known as cytokines that are released by macrophages, lymphocytes, and in the
Introduction
Cancer before epigenetics
History of cancer. Cancer is characterized by an out of control growth of tissues within one’s body. These cells are known as a mutated tissue cells, and these resulted in a new replication patterns. The word cancer was derived from the term carinas and carcinoma to describe non-ulcer forming or ulcer-forming tumors by the Greek physician Hippocrates (460-370 B.C). Studies over the centuries have been trying to determine the derivatives of the mutated cells being that cancer dates back to about 3000 B.C. in Egypt (American Cancer Society, 2016). It had been proposed that the cells were a result of unbalanced humors, lymph theory, blastemal theory, chronic irritation, …show more content…
Modern developments have deemed that cancer is caused by viral and chemical carcinogens. In 1915, researchers at the University of Tokyo, produced cancer in the lab by applying coal tar to an animal’s skin, which proved that cancer was caused by chemical carcinogens (American Cancer Society, 2016). The World Health Organization (WHO) has since identified 100 chemicals, physical, and biological carcinogens that cause the development of cancer (American Cancer Society, 2016). Despite the fact of carcinogens, families had cancers that were passed from generation to generation that were soon discovered to have a genetic basis. In 1970, scientist revealed two genes that were related to cancer known as oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes (American Cancer Society, 2016). Oncogenes are gene that cause out of control cell growth that become cancerous. Tumor suppressor genes, are genes that slow down the cellular division that leads to errors in DNA repair, which prevents the cells from inducing apoptosis (You & Jones, 2012). Yearly, cancer causes 8.1 million deaths worldwide, and 14 million new cases arise. Currently, there are treatments …show more content…
The immune system is in a delicate balance with all other systems of the body. When the body is chronically stressed an amplified activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which controls the impairment of the immune response. This impacts the occurrence and advancement of different classes of cancer development. These increased reactions cause amplified neurosensory signals to be formed in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus and in the locus coeruleus-noradrenergic centre. In response, the hypothalamus emits cortcotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and arginine vasopression, which triggers the HPA axis, controlling the release of pituitary peptides manufactured by differential cleavage of pro-opiomelanocortin, particularly by adrenocorticotrophic hormone, encephalin, and endorphins. Adrenocorticotrophic hormone prompts downstream delivery of glucocorticoids from the adrenal cortex. The initiation of the sympathetic nervous system by CRF is facilitated by direct innervation of the locus coeruleus in the brainstem, which proceeds widespread release of norepinephrine throughout the brain and peripheral tissues. All of these reactions cause a feedback mechanism leading to increased release of corticosteroids that have the ability to cause immunosuppression (Reiche, Vargas Nunes, & Kaminami Morimoto, 2004). The immune system has cells that are known as cytokines that are released by macrophages, lymphocytes, and in the