BIRC5 and cancer: Finally, to determine if G9A inhibition leads specifically to changes in the H3K9 methylation status of the target genes themselves, we performed H3K9me2 ChIP-qPCR on BIRC5. BIRC5 is an anti-apoptotic gene [28] and its downregulation may increase apoptosis in cancer cells, in line with the therapeutic effect of G9A inhibition.