m ⁶A甲基化是20世纪70年代被发现的一种RNA分子上的甲基化修饰,存在于各种RNA中,但主要在mRNA中出现。与DNA甲基化相似,m ⁶A甲基化也可以在不改变碱基序列的情况下对基因的转录后表达水平具有调控作用。它主要是通过影响mRNA与读取蛋白的结合,从而调控mRNA的可变剪接、翻译效率和稳定性等,进而改变基因表达。研究早期,受限于m ⁶A甲基化位点的检测技术不够灵敏,转录组中的m ⁶A位点无法被完整而有效地鉴别。随着二代测序与生物信息学的发展,已有多种方法可以对m ⁶A甲基化位点进行检测和预测。目前的研究表明,m ⁶A甲基化与肿瘤的发生发展也密切相关。本文结合近期的研究进展,对m ⁶A甲基化的概念、检测和预测手段,特别是m6A与肿瘤发生之间的关系进行了综述,旨在为肿瘤的分子病理诊断和分子靶向治疗寻找新方向。

Predominantly found in mRNA, m ⁶A methylation of RNA molecules regulates post-transcriptional gene expression without changing RNA sequence. m ⁶A methylation alters gene expression by modulating mRNA processing and metabolism, including alternative splicing, translation efficiency, and stability. Current research shows that m ⁶A methylation is involved in tumorigenesis, highlighting the importance of further study. However, traditional methods are not sensitive enough to detect the full patterns of m ⁶A methylation in the transcriptome. The development of new technologies, such as single-nucleotide detection combined with next generation sequencing, allows for the quick and accurate prediction and identification of m ⁶A methylation sites. In this review, we summarize the recent progress of m ⁶A in tumorigenesis and outline a new direction for both molecular pathology diagnosis and targeted therapy of tumor.