Emerging roles of N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification in breast cancer
Yanyan Wang, Yujie Zhang, Yushen Du, Meiqi Zhou, Yue Hu, Suzhan Zhang
Abstract
Abstract N 6-Methyladenosine (m 6 A) is the most abundant, dynamic, and reversible epigenetic RNA modification that is found in coding and non-coding RNAs. Emerging studies have shown that m 6 A and its regulators affect multiple steps in RNA metabolism and play broad roles in various cancers. Worldwide, breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer in female. It is a very heterogeneous disease characterized by genetic and epigenetic variations in tumor cells. Increasing evidence has shown that the dysregulation of m 6 A-related effectors, as methyltransferases, demethylases, and m 6 A binding proteins, is pivotal in breast cancer pathogenesis. In this review, we have summarized the most up-to-date research on the biological functions of m 6 A modification in breast cancer and have discussed the potential clinical applications and future directions of m 6 A modification as a biomarker as well as a therapeutic target of breast cancer.