State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center of Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, 510060, Guangzhou, P.R. China.
State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center of Cancer Medicine, Department of Molecular Diagnostics, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, 510060, Guangzhou, P.R. China.
Cell Death Differ. 2022 Jun;29(6):1137-1151. doi: 10.1038/s41418-021-00905-w. Epub 2022 Jan 8.
As the most predominant RNA epigenetic regulation in eukaryotic cells, N-methyladenosine (mA) plays a critical role in human tumorigenesis and cancer progression. However, the biological function and molecular mechanism of mA regulation in naso-pharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) remain elusive. Here, we showed that Wilms' tumor 1-associating protein (WTAP) expression was apparently upregulated in NPC, and increased WTAP was associated with poor prognosis. WTAP upregulated in NPC was fine-tuned by KAT3A-mediated H3K27 acetylation. Functionally, WTAP was required for the growth and metastasis of NPC. Mechanistically, lncRNA DIAPH1-AS1 was identified as a bona fide mA target of WTAP. WTAP-mediated mA modification of DIAPH1-AS1 enhanced its stability relying on the mA reader IGF2BP2-dependent pathway. Furthermore, DIAPH1-AS1 acted as a molecular adaptor that promoted MTDH-LASP1 complex formation and upregulated LASP1 expression, ultimately facilitating NPC growth and metastasis. Thus, WTAP-mediated DIAPH1-AS1 mA methylation is required for NPC tumorigenesis and metastasis.
作为真核细胞中最主要的 RNA 表观遗传调控,N6-甲基腺苷(m6A)在人类肿瘤发生和癌症进展中发挥着关键作用。然而,m6A 调控在鼻咽癌(NPC)中的生物学功能和分子机制仍不清楚。在这里,我们发现 Wilms 瘤 1 相关蛋白(WTAP)在 NPC 中明显上调,并且 WTAP 的增加与预后不良有关。NPC 中上调的 WTAP 是由 KAT3A 介导的 H3K27 乙酰化精细调控的。功能上,WTAP 是 NPC 生长和转移所必需的。在机制上,lncRNA DIAPH1-AS1 被鉴定为 WTAP 的一个真正的 m6A 靶标。WTAP 介导的 DIAPH1-AS1 的 m6A 修饰依赖于 mA 阅读器 IGF2BP2 依赖性途径增强了其稳定性。此外,DIAPH1-AS1 作为一种分子衔接物,促进了 MTDH-LASP1 复合物的形成,并上调了 LASP1 的表达,最终促进了 NPC 的生长和转移。因此,WTAP 介导的 DIAPH1-AS1 m6A 甲基化是 NPC 发生和转移所必需的。