Epigenetic Mechanisms of Oral Leukoplakia: A Systematic Review

Authors

  • Noor Azliza Wani Abd. Aziz Faculty of Dentistry, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Sungai Buloh Campus, Jalan Hospital, 47000 Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Nur Hayani Batrisya Mohd Rosli Faculty of Dentistry, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Sungai Buloh Campus, Jalan Hospital, 47000 Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Nur Sabrina Nazri Faculty of Dentistry, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Sungai Buloh Campus, Jalan Hospital, 47000 Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Jamil Ahsan Kazi Faculty of Dentistry, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Sungai Buloh Campus, Jalan Hospital, 47000 Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Malaysia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24191/cos.v12i1.5653

Keywords:

epigenetic, genomic instability, oral leukoplakia, oral premalignant lesions (OPLs)

Abstract

Objectives: Oral leukoplakia (OL) is the most common type of oral potentially malignant disorder and has a malignancy transformation rate ranging from 0.1% to 17.5%. The rates of malignant transformation of oral leukoplakia (OL) to oral carcinoma can reach as high as 70%. Epithelial dysplasia in OL is linked to progression toward malignant transformation. We performed a systematic review (SR) to identify the epigenetic alterations and progression of OL. Methods: The study protocol was registered in PROSPERO, ID: CRD42024497161. We searched PubMed, MEDLINE, Scopus, ScienceDirect, Web of Science, ClinicalKey and Wiley databases from 2018 to 2023. This SR was conducted following PRISMA guidelines, and articles were selected based on defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results: Seven studies met the inclusion criteria. Results documented that epigenetic malignant transformation of LO involved hyper and hypo methylations CpG promoter of tumor suppressor gene, Enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) expressing cells in both the epithelium and the connective tissues, methylation in Retinoic Acid Receptor Beta (RARβ) promoter, involvement non-coding miRNA correlate positively with the degree of dysplasia, salivary miRNA demonstrated potential for the diagnosis and follow-up of OL patients. Conclusion: Epigenetic noncoding miRNA biomarkers have potential mechanistic roles as targets for early diagnosis and as prognostic markers for the transformation of OL cells to malignancy.

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Published

2025-03-01

How to Cite

Abd. Aziz, N. A. W., Mohd Rosli, N. H. B., Nazri, N. S., & Kazi, J. A. (2025). Epigenetic Mechanisms of Oral Leukoplakia: A Systematic Review. Compendium of Oral Science, 12(1), 123–137. https://doi.org/10.24191/cos.v12i1.5653

Issue

Vol. 12 No. 1 (2025): Compendium of Oral Science

Section

Systematic Review

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Copyright (c) 2025 Compendium of Oral Science

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