Given the success of Research Topic
Biomolecular Modifications in Endocrine-Related Cancers and the rapidly evolving subject area, we are pleased to announce the launch of Volume II.
The central dogma is a framework to explain the flow of sequence information between information-carrying biomolecules including DNAs, RNAs, and proteins. Modifications are important molecular events that occur in these biomolecules, which significantly regulate the structures and functions of biomolecules and even the entire biological systems. Modifications of biomolecules have been recognized to extensively associate with different pathological and physiological conditions, including cancer, inflammatory disease, neurodegenerative disease, metabolic disease, and diabetes. Modifications of biomolecules are very complex and are the important factors to cause the diversity of biomolecules. There are several modifications such as cytosine methylation and hydroxymethylation occurring in DNAs and at least 20 post-translational modifications occurring in DNA-binding protein histone to regulate the structures and functions of DNAs, at least 170 post-transcriptional modifications such as 3- and 5-methylcytosines (m3C, m5C), N1- and N6-methyladenosines (m1A, m6A, m6Am), pseudouridine (?), 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (hm5C), and 2'-O-methylation (Nm) occurring in RNAs to regulate the structures and functions of RNAs, and 400-600 post-translational modifications such as phosphorylation, glycosylation, ubiquitylation, methylation, sumoylation, acetylation, sulfation, deamidation, nitration, nitrosylation, hydroxylation, succinylation, prenylation, myristoylation, and palmitoylation occurring in proteins to regulate the structures and functions of proteins. Different modifications of biomolecules have different characteristics and methodologies of research. The development of genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, proteoformics, and bioinformatics is tremendously driving the large-scale studies of biomolecular modifications, including qualitative and quantitative analyses of biomolecular modifications – modified sites and the corresponding modification levels, and further clarify the cellular signaling molecular mechanisms and functions that modifications are involved in. Moreover, there are antagonistic and synergistic effects between biomolecular modifications in a biomolecule to significantly complicate their biological effects. To date, studies on biomolecular modifications are far insufficient in the fields of life sciences and medical sciences. It is time to strengthen the studies of biomolecular modifications in breadth and depth.
Endocrine is actually involved in all cancers, including pituitary adenoma, ovarian cancer, breast cancer, thyroid carcinoma, lung cancer, gastric cancer, colon cancer, hepatic carcinoma, etc. Endocrine-related cancers are important disorders in the endocrine system, which are involved in a series of modifications in biomolecules (DNAs, RNAs, and Proteins). These modifications are the crucial factors to cause the diversity of biomolecules and contribute to the occurrence and development of endocrine-related cancers, which are the source of novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets of endocrine-related cancers. This special issue will discuss the presentation, functional role, and mechanism of different biomolecular modifications in endocrine-related cancer, which will pave the way to systematically study biomolecular modifications at three different levels of DNAs, RNAs, and proteins in endocrine-related cancers.
This Research Topic will focus on the global identification and quantification of different biomolecular modifications with different omics, functional roles and molecular mechanisms of different biomolecular modifications, in different endocrine-related cancers. This topic welcomes Original Research and Review articles in the following aspects, but not limited to these aspects:
- Protein modifications/Post-translational modifications, including phosphorylation, glycosylation, ubiquitination, acetylation, nitration, nitrosylation, nitration, methylation, etc., in different endocrine-related cancers.
- RNA modifications/post-transcriptional modifications, including m1A, m6A, m6Am, hm5C, Nm, etc., in different endocrine-related cancers.
- DNA modifications, including cytosine methylation and hydroxymethylation in DNAs, and post-translational modifications occurring in DNA-binding protein histone, in different endocrine-related cancers.
- Antagonistic and synergistic effects between biomolecular modifications in a biomolecule in different endocrine-related cancers.
- Role of biomolecular modifications in different endocrine-related cancers.