Scarrow Margaret, Chen Ning, Sun Genlou
Biology Department, Saint Mary's University, Halifax, Canada.
Crit Rev Biotechnol. 2020 Aug;40(5):639-652. doi: 10.1080/07388551.2020.1751059. Epub 2020 Apr 22.
N-methyladenosine (m6A) RNA methylation has become a progressively popular area of molecular research since the discovery of its potentially essential regulatory role amongst eukaryotes. m6A marks are observed in the 5'UTR, 3'UTR and coding regions of eukaryotes and its mediation has been associated with various human diseases, RNA stability and translational efficiency. To understand the implications of m6A methylation in molecular governance, its functionality and mechanism must be initially understood. m6A regulation through its readers, writers and erasers as well as an insight into the potential "cross-talk" occurring between m6A and previously well documented regulatory molecular mechanisms have been characterized. The majority of research to date has been limited to few species and has yet to explore the species- and tissue specific nature or mechanistic plasticity of m6A regulation. There is still a tremendous gap in our knowledge surrounding the mechanism and functionality of m6A RNA methylation. Here we review the formation, removal, and decoding of m6A amongst animals, yeast, and plants while noting potential "cross-talk" between various mechanisms and highlighting potential areas of future research.
自从发现N-甲基腺苷（m6A）RNA甲基化在真核生物中可能具有至关重要的调控作用以来，它已逐渐成为分子研究中一个热门领域。在真核生物的5'非翻译区（UTR）、3'UTR和编码区都能观察到m6A标记，并且其介导作用与多种人类疾病、RNA稳定性及翻译效率相关。为了理解m6A甲基化在分子调控中的意义，必须首先了解其功能和机制。m6A通过其“读取器”“写入器”和“擦除器”进行调控，以及对m6A与先前已充分记录的调控分子机制之间可能存在的“串扰”也已有了一定认识。迄今为止，大多数研究仅限于少数物种，尚未探究m6A调控的物种和组织特异性本质或机制可塑性。我们对m6A RNA甲基化的机制和功能的了解仍然存在巨大差距。在此，我们综述了动物、酵母和植物中m6A的形成、去除和解码过程，同时指出各种机制之间可能存在的“串扰”，并强调未来研究的潜在领域。
