Fan Xiaoru, Zhang Yong, Gu Pengyuan, Naz Misbah
School of Chemistry and Life Science, Anshan Normal University, Anshan 114007, China.
Liaoning Key Laboratory of Development and Utilization for Natural Products Active Molecules, Anshan 114007, China.
Plants (Basel). 2025 Jun 30;14(13):2002. doi: 10.3390/plants14132002.
Drought stress is a predominant abiotic constraint adversely affecting global rice () production and threatening food security. While the transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation of drought-responsive pathways has been widely investigated, the emerging field of epitranscriptomics, particularly RNA chemical modifications such as N6-methyladenosine (mA), adds a new dimension to gene regulation under stress. The most prevalent internal modification in eukaryotic messenger RNA influences RNA metabolism by interacting dynamically with enzymes that add, remove, or recognize the modification. Recent studies in rice reveal that mA deposition is not static but dynamically regulated in response to water-deficit conditions, influencing transcript stability, splicing, nuclear export, and translation efficiency of key drought-responsive genes. This review critically synthesizes current findings on the distribution and functional implications of mA and other epitranscriptomic marks (e.g., 5-methylcytosine [mC], [Ψ]) in modulating rice responses to drought. We discuss the regulatory circuitry involving mA effectors such as , , and domain proteins and their integration with known drought-signaling pathways including ABA and reactive oxygen species (ROS) cascades. We also highlight emerging high-resolution technologies such as mA-seq, direct RNA sequencing, and nanopore-based detection that facilitate epitranscriptomic profiling in rice. Finally, we propose future directions for translating epitranscriptomic knowledge into crop improvement, including /-based modulation of RNA modification machinery to enhance drought tolerance.
干旱胁迫是一种主要的非生物限制因素，对全球水稻生产产生不利影响，并威胁粮食安全。虽然干旱响应途径的转录和转录后调控已得到广泛研究，但新兴的表观转录组学领域，特别是RNA化学修饰，如N6-甲基腺苷（m6A），为胁迫下的基因调控增添了新的维度。真核生物信使RNA中最普遍的内部修饰通过与添加、去除或识别该修饰的酶动态相互作用来影响RNA代谢。最近在水稻中的研究表明，m6A沉积不是静态的，而是在水分亏缺条件下受到动态调控，影响关键干旱响应基因的转录本稳定性、剪接、核输出和翻译效率。本综述批判性地综合了当前关于m6A和其他表观转录组标记（如5-甲基胞嘧啶[m5C]、假尿苷[Ψ]）在调节水稻干旱响应中的分布和功能意义的研究结果。我们讨论了涉及m6A效应器（如FTO、ALKBH5和YTH结构域蛋白）的调控回路，以及它们与包括脱落酸（ABA）和活性氧（ROS）级联在内的已知干旱信号通路的整合。我们还强调了新兴的高分辨率技术，如m6A测序、直接RNA测序和基于纳米孔的检测，这些技术有助于水稻表观转录组分析。最后，我们提出了将表观转录组学知识转化为作物改良的未来方向，包括基于CRISPR/Cas的RNA修饰机制调控以增强耐旱性。
