Abstract:

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.

Key words: m ⁶A, RNA methylation, epigenetics, tumor