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PMID: 29587823 Published · epublish English Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Review

Multiple functions of m6A RNA methylation in cancer.

Journal of hematology & oncology ·Vol. 11 ·No. 1 ·2018-00-27 ·Pages 48

Pan Y, Ma P, Liu Y, Li W, Shu Y

Abstract

First identified in 1974, m6A RNA methylation, which serves as a predominant internal modification of RNA in higher eukaryotes, has gained prodigious interest in recent years. Modifications of m6A are dynamic and reversible in mammalian cells, which have been proposed as another layer of epigenetic regulation similar to DNA and histone modifications. m6A RNA methylation is involved in all stages in the life cycle of RNA, ranging from RNA processing, through nuclear export, translation modulation to RNA degradation, which suggests its potential of influencing a plurality of aspects of RNA metabolism. All of the recent studies have pointed to a complicated regulation network of m6A modification in different tissues, cell lines, and space-time models. m6A methylation has been found to have an impact on tumor initiation and progression through various mechanisms. Furthermore, m6A RNA methylation has provided new opportunities for early stage diagnosis and treatment of cancers.Herein, we review the chemical basis of m6A RNA methylation, its multiple functions and potential significance in cancer.

Keywords
Cancer Mechanism RNA methylation m6A
MeSH Terms
Humans Methylation Neoplasms/genetics,metabolism RNA/genetics
Chemicals
RNA
Authors & Affiliations
5 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Pan Yutian
Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China.
Ma Pei
Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China.
Liu Yu
Department of Orthopaedics, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
Li Wei
Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China. real.lw@163.com. | Department of Oncology, Sir Run Run Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China. real.lw@163.com.
Shu Yongqian
Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China. yongqianshu@hotmail.com. | Jiangsu Key Lab of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Personalized Medicine, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China. yongqianshu@hotmail.com. | Department of Oncology, Sir Run Run Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China. yongqianshu@hotmail.com.
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Article Info
Journal
Journal of hematology & oncology
Abbr.
J Hematol Oncol
ISSN
1756-8722
DOI
10.1186/s13045-018-0590-8
Email
real.lw@163.com
yongqianshu@hotmail.com
Published
2018-00-27
Epub
2018-00-27
Pages
48
Language
English
Region
England
NLM ID
101468937
PMCID
PMC5870302
Subset
IM
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1186/s13045-018-0590-8 PMC Full Text View journal details
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