CellPress

Single cell cancer epigenetics

Marta Casado-Pelaez, Alberto Bueno-Costa, Manel Esteller - October 2022

The epigenome encompasses several mechanisms controlling gene expression that can be aberrantly regulated during cancer development and progression. Tumors are highly complex and heterogeneous biological systems that require the study of epigenetic alterations at a single cell resolution. Several single cell technologies developed to study different layers of the epigenome, such as chromatin accessibility or histone modifications, have been developed and applied in cancer research over the past few years, improving our understanding of the mechanisms driving tumorigenesis. Although these techniques are promising, most are still nascent and present limitations, such as low throughput and limited coverage. In addition, the analysis and integration of the various single cell epigenomic data modalities have challenges and require the development of new computational tools.