Scaling up in epigenetics

GlaxoSmithKline plc last week confirmed its belief that epigenetics might be a useful tool in the discovery of new anti-inflammatory drugs. Convinced by a growing body of scientific evidence that epigenetic processes such as DNA methylation and histone modifications are critical regulatory events in mammalian gene expression, the pharma has acquired exclusive access to a platform technology developed by Cellzome AG for the discovery of oral small molecules to treat immuno-inflammatory diseases.

Epigenetics is concerned with heritable changes that do not change the DNA sequence, but instead involve stable modifications of chromatin, DNA or protein conformation. Much of the field's scientific focus has been on histone demethylases, which modify chromatin function and are seen as potential targets for treating immune diseases...