Exploring the Role of Non-coding RNA and Epigenetic Regulation in Cancer: From Molecular Insights to Targeted Delivery Systems

Cancer research has rapidly evolved with advances in molecular biology, yet cancer remains one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide due to challenges such as late diagnosis, aggressive metastasis, tumor heterogeneity, recurrence, and resistance to therapy. While less than 2% of the human genome encodes proteins, the remaining portion transcribes a diverse array of non-coding RNAs whose regulatory networks remain incompletely understood. These non-coding RNAs, including microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), and circular RNAs (circRNAs), together with epigenetic modifications such as DNA methylation, histone modifications, and chromatin remodeling, play fundamental roles in regulating gene expression, cellular signaling, tumor initiation, progression, metastasis, immune evasion, and therapeutic resistance across multiple cancer types. Recent discoveries underscore the importance of unraveling these molecular mechanisms to identify novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets. However, a comprehensive understanding of the crosstalk between non-coding RNAs and epigenetic regulators, their functional dynamics within the tumor microenvironment, and the development of efficient delivery systems for RNA-based therapeutics remains limited and urgently requires further investigation.This Research Topic aims to advance our understanding of how non-coding RNAs and epigenetic regulators contribute to cancer biology, progression, metastasis, and treatment response across diverse malignancies. Specifically, it seeks to elucidate the interactions between non-coding RNAs, epigenetic mechanisms, and signaling pathways involved in tumor development and progression, as well as to explore how these molecules mediate communication among tumor, stromal, and immune cells within the tumor microenvironment. A central objective is to identify key oncogenic and tumor-suppressive RNAs and evaluate their potential as diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive biomarkers. In addition, this topic encourages the development of innovative therapeutic strategies, with particular emphasis on the design of efficient and targeted in vivo delivery systems for RNA-based and epigenetic therapies aimed at overcoming drug resistance and improving clinical outcomes.To gather further insights into the molecular and translational aspects of cancer biology, we welcome original research articles and review articles that address, but are not limited to, the following themes:- Molecular mechanisms underlying cancer initiation, progression, metastasis, and therapeutic resistance- Roles of non-coding RNAs (miRNAs, lncRNAs, circRNAs, and other regulatory RNAs) in gene regulation and tumorigenesis- Epigenetic modifications and their functional implications in cancer development and progression- Crosstalk among tumor, stromal, and immune cells within the tumor microenvironment- Non-coding RNA and epigenetic regulation in cancer stemness, immune evasion, and precision oncology- Development and optimization of RNA-based therapeutic strategies for cancer treatment- Novel delivery systems for in vivo administration of RNA and epigenetic therapies- Biomarker discovery for early diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic response monitoring across cancer types- Multi-omics and systems biology approaches to studying non-coding RNA and epigenetic networks in cancer- Translational and clinical applications of RNA-targeted and epigenetic therapies in oncologyPlease note: manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics, computational analysis, or predictions of public databases which are not accompanied by validation (independent clinical or patient cohort, or biological validation in vitro or in vivo, which are not based on public databases) are not suitable for publication in this Research Topic. Topic editors: ARPAN DEY BHOWMIK, Dr. Vilas D Nasare, Sharmila Sengupta, Dr. Subhayan Sur Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/81139/exploring-the-role-of-non-coding-rna-and-epigenetic-regulation-in-cancer-from-molecular-insights-to-targeted-delivery-systems