Editing Homeobox (section)

== Regulation ==
[[Hox gene|Hox genes]] and their associated [[microRNA]]s are highly conserved developmental master regulators with tight tissue-specific, spatiotemporal control. These genes are known to be dysregulated in several cancers and are often controlled by DNA methylation.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite journal | vauthors = Dunn J, Thabet S, Jo H | title = Flow-Dependent Epigenetic DNA Methylation in Endothelial Gene Expression and Atherosclerosis | journal = Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology | volume = 35 | issue = 7 | pages = 1562–9 | date = July 2015 | pmid = 25953647 | pmc = 4754957 | doi = 10.1161/ATVBAHA.115.305042 }}</ref><ref name="pmid24996520">{{cite journal | vauthors = Bhatlekar S, Fields JZ, Boman BM | title = HOX genes and their role in the development of human cancers | journal = Journal of Molecular Medicine | volume = 92 | issue = 8 | pages = 811–23 | date = August 2014 | pmid = 24996520 | doi = 10.1007/s00109-014-1181-y | s2cid = 17159381 }}</ref> The regulation of Hox genes is highly complex and involves reciprocal interactions, mostly inhibitory. [[Drosophila]] is known to use the [[Polycomb-group proteins|polycomb]] and [[Trithorax-group proteins|trithorax]] complexes to maintain the expression of Hox genes after the down-regulation of the pair-rule and gap genes that occurs during larval development. [[Polycomb-group proteins]] can silence the Hox genes by modulation of [[chromatin]] structure.<ref name="Portoso">{{cite book|url=http://www.horizonpress.com/rnareg|title=RNA and the Regulation of Gene Expression: A Hidden Layer of Complexity|vauthors=Portoso M, Cavalli G|publisher=Caister Academic Press|year=2008|isbn=978-1-904455-25-7|chapter=The Role of RNAi and Noncoding RNAs in Polycomb Mediated Control of Gene Expression and Genomic Programming|chapter-url=http://www.horizonpress.com/rnareg|access-date=2008-02-27|archive-date=2012-01-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120102091412/http://www.horizonpress.com/rnareg|url-status=live}}</ref>