DNA methylation is a postreplicative covalent modification of the DNA which is catalysed by the DNA methyltransferase enzyme. DNA methylation plays an important role in controlling the gene expression profile of mammalian cells. The hypothesis presented in this thesis is that the expression of the DNA methyltransferase gene is upregulated by cellular oncogenic pathways, and that this induction of MeTase activity results in DNA hypermethylation and plays a causal role in cellular transformation. Novel DNA methyltransferase inhibitors may inhibit the excessive activity of DNA methyltransferase in cancer cells and induce the original cellular genetic program. These inhibitors may also be used to turn on alternative gene expression programs. Therefore specific DNA methyltransferase antagonists might provide us with therapeutics directed at a nodal point in the regulation of genetic information.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.39956 |
| Date | January 1995 |
| Creators | MacLeod, A. Robert (Robert Alan), 1966- |
| Contributors | Szyf, Moshe (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Doctor of Philosophy (Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001481513, proquestno: NN12427, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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