Zheng Qing-Kang, Shi Ya-Nan, Yang Ming-Yuan, Xie Yi-Yuan, Sun Kai, Niu Huan-Zhang
The First Affiliated Hospital, College of Clinical Medicine, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang, 471003, China.
Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, College of Clinical Medicine of Henan, University of Science and Technology, Luoyang, 471003, China.
Cancer Cell Int. 2025 Jul 28;25(1):286. doi: 10.1186/s12935-025-03923-7.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) ranks as a significant global malignancy, occupying the sixth position in incidence and the third in cancer-related mortality. Despite this, the mechanisms underlying HCC progression remain insufficiently understood. m6A modification is one of the most common post-transcriptional modifications in eukaryotic mRNA, regulated by methyltransferases, demethylases, and mA-binding proteins. Proteins specialized in m6A recognition selectively bind to m6A-modified RNA, influencing processes such as splicing, maturation, nucleation, degradation, and translation. Current research, both domestic and international, primarily explores how m6A modification and its associated proteins affect malignant cell proliferation, migration, invasion, metastasis, and drug resistance. However, the role of m6A-related proteins in tumor progression in HCC remains poorly characterized. This review elucidates the composition, mechanisms, and biological functions of m6A methylation modification proteins in HCC progression, alongside recent advancements in m6A-related biomarker discovery and immunotherapeutic developments, aiming to enhance early clinical diagnosis and facilitate targeted drug development for HCC.
肝细胞癌（HCC）是一种重要的全球恶性肿瘤，在发病率方面位居第六，在癌症相关死亡率方面位居第三。尽管如此，HCC进展的潜在机制仍未得到充分了解。m6A修饰是真核mRNA中最常见的转录后修饰之一，受甲基转移酶、去甲基酶和m6A结合蛋白调控。专门识别m6A的蛋白质选择性地与m6A修饰的RNA结合，影响剪接、成熟、成核、降解和翻译等过程。目前国内外研究主要探讨m6A修饰及其相关蛋白如何影响恶性细胞增殖、迁移、侵袭、转移和耐药性。然而，m6A相关蛋白在HCC肿瘤进展中的作用仍不清楚。本综述阐明了m6A甲基化修饰蛋白在HCC进展中的组成、机制和生物学功能，以及m6A相关生物标志物发现和免疫治疗进展，旨在提高早期临床诊断并促进HCC的靶向药物开发。
