Epigenetics has long been a hot topic in the field of scientific research. The scope of epigenetics usually includes chromatin remodelling, DNA methylation, histone modifications, non-coding RNAs and RNA modifications. In recent years, RNA modifications have emerged as important regulators in a variety of physiological processes and in disease progression, especially in human cancers. Among the various RNA modifications, m6 A is the most common. The function of m6 A modifications is mainly regulated by 3 types of proteins: m6 A methyltransferases (writers), m6 A demethylases (erasers) and m6 A-binding proteins (readers). In this review, we focus on RNA m6 A modification and its relationship with urological cancers, particularly focusing on its roles and potential clinical applications.
Keywords: RNA modification; epigenetics; m6A; urological cancers.
© 2020 The Authors. Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine published by Foundation for Cellular and Molecular Medicine and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.