Advances in researches on epigenetic toxicity of cadmium

Cadmium is one of the most common heavy metal toxicant and mainly enters body through the food chain. In industry, the extensive use of cadmium compounds will inevitably result in environmental cadmium contamination. The toxic effects of cadmium on organisms include liver and kidney damage, neuroendocrine, reproductive development and carcinogenic teratogenesis, and may be closely related to developmental diseases. Epigenetics can regulate gene expressions without altering the DNA sequence, including DNA methylation, histone modification, and non-coding RNA. Genetic mechanisms have been shown to be one of the important mechanisms for toxic effects of cadmium-containing chemicals, but recent studies have shown that the role of epigenetics modifications in regulating the toxic effects of cadmium may be more important. Therefore, we review the role of epigenetic modification in the toxic effects of cadmium.