Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, 450014, Zhengzhou, China.
Henan Gynecological diseases (Gynecology Oncology) Clinical Research Center, 450014, Zhengzhou, China.
Sci Rep. 2024 Oct 18;14(1):24469. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-73601-7.
N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is the most prevalent modification found in eukaryotic RNA and played a significant role in various cancers. However, the mechanism by which m6A modification influences cervical cancer (CC) tumorigenesis remains unclear. Therefore, we aim to elucidate the role and mechanism of METTL3 in CC progression. In the present study, we observed a significant upregulation of METTL3 in CC tissues and cell lines. Knockdown of METTL3 resulted in reduced growth, migration, and invasion of CC cells, as well as affected apoptosis, while overexpression of METTL3 reversed these effects. Through a combined analysis of meRIP-seq and Ribo-seq data following METTL3 knockdown, NEK2 was identified as a key target of METTL3 in CC cells. Correlation analysis, MeRIP-qPCR, and luciferase reporter assay suggested that METTL3 regulates NEK2 expression through m6A modification. NEK2 synergized with METTL3 to mediate the malignant phenotype of CC cells. The METTL3-NEK2 axis promoted CC progression by activating the Wnt/β-catenin pathway and inhibiting the apoptosis pathway. In conclusion, METTL3 facilitated the malignant progression of CC and contributed to the formation of the METTL3-NEK2 regulatory axis in an m6A-dependent manner, which represented a potential target for CC therapy.
N6-甲基腺苷(m6A)是真核 RNA 中最普遍的修饰,在各种癌症中发挥着重要作用。然而,m6A 修饰影响宫颈癌(CC)发生的机制尚不清楚。因此,我们旨在阐明 METTL3 在 CC 进展中的作用和机制。在本研究中,我们观察到 METTL3 在 CC 组织和细胞系中显著上调。METTL3 敲低导致 CC 细胞的生长、迁移和侵袭减少,并影响细胞凋亡,而过表达 METTL3 则逆转了这些效应。通过对 METTL3 敲低后进行 MeRIP-seq 和 Ribo-seq 联合分析,我们鉴定出 NEK2 是 CC 细胞中 METTL3 的关键靶标。相关性分析、MeRIP-qPCR 和荧光素酶报告基因检测表明,METTL3 通过 m6A 修饰调控 NEK2 的表达。NEK2 与 METTL3 协同作用,介导 CC 细胞的恶性表型。METTL3-NEK2 轴通过激活 Wnt/β-catenin 通路和抑制凋亡通路促进 CC 进展。总之,METTL3 促进了 CC 的恶性进展,并以 m6A 依赖的方式促进了 METTL3-NEK2 调节轴的形成,这代表了 CC 治疗的一个潜在靶点。