RNA m6A Modification in Cancers: Molecular Mechanisms and Potential Clinical Applications

Chang Gu; Xin Shi; Chenyang Dai; Feng Shen; Gaetano Rocco; Jiafei Chen; Zhengyu Huang; Chunji Chen; Chuan He; Tao Huang; Chang Chen

doi:10.1016/j.xinn.2020.100066

RNA m⁶A Modification in Cancers: Molecular Mechanisms and Potential Clinical Applications

Innovation (Camb). 2020 Nov 4;1(3):100066. doi: 10.1016/j.xinn.2020.100066. eCollection 2020 Nov 25.

Authors

Chang Gu¹, Xin Shi², Chenyang Dai¹, Feng Shen³, Gaetano Rocco^{4

5}, Jiafei Chen¹, Zhengyu Huang⁶, Chunji Chen⁷, Chuan He^{8

9

10

11}, Tao Huang¹², Chang Chen¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Thoracic Surgery, Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200433, China.
² Department of Cardiology, Shanghai Chest Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200030, China.
³ School of Biomedical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200030, China.
⁴ Thoracic Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10065, USA.
⁵ Druckenmiller Center for Lung Cancer Research, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10065, USA.
⁶ Department of Colorectal and Anal Surgery, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China.
⁷ Department of Thoracic Surgery, Shanghai Chest Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
⁸ Department of Chemistry and Institute for Biophysical Dynamics, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
⁹ Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
¹⁰ Medical Scientist Training Program/Committee on Cancer Biology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
¹¹ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
¹² Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.

Abstract

N⁶-Methyladenosine (m⁶A) RNA modification brings a new dawn for RNA modification researches in recent years. This posttranscriptional RNA modification is dynamic and reversible, and is regulated by methylases ("writers"), demethylases ("erasers"), and proteins that preferentially recognize m⁶A modifications ("readers"). The change of RNA m⁶A modification regulates RNA metabolism in eucaryon, including translation, splicing, exporting, decay, and processing. Thereby the dysregulation of m⁶A may lead to tumorigenesis and progression. Given the tumorigenic role of abnormal m⁶A expression, m⁶A regulators may function as potential clinical therapeutic targets for cancers. In this review, we emphasize on the underlying mechanisms of m⁶A modifications in tumorigenesis and further introduce the potential m⁶A regulators-associated therapeutic targets for tumor therapy.

Keywords: N6-methyladenosine; RNA methylation; cancer; therapy.

Publication types

Review