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Jiang X, Zhan L, Tang X. RNA modifications in physiology and pathology: Progressing towards application in clinical settings. Cell Signal 2024; 121:111242. [PMID: 38851412 DOI: 10.1016/j.cellsig.2024.111242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2024] [Revised: 05/23/2024] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/10/2024]
Abstract
The potential to modify individual nucleotides through chemical means in order to impact the electrostatic charge, hydrophobic properties, and base pairing of RNA molecules is harnessed in the medical application of stable synthetic RNAs like mRNA vaccines and synthetic small RNA molecules. These modifications are used to either increase or decrease the production of therapeutic proteins. Additionally, naturally occurring biochemical alterations of nucleotides play a role in regulating RNA metabolism and function, thereby modulating essential cellular processes. Research elucidating the mechanisms through which RNA modifications govern fundamental cellular functions in multicellular organisms has enhanced our comprehension of how irregular RNA modification profiles can lead to human diseases. Collectively, these fundamental scientific findings have unveiled the molecular and cellular functions of RNA modifications, offering new opportunities for therapeutic intervention and paving the way for a variety of innovative clinical strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xue Jiang
- College of Pharmacy and Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jiangsu College of Nursing, Huaian, Jiangsu 223005, China
| | - Lijuan Zhan
- College of Pharmacy and Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jiangsu College of Nursing, Huaian, Jiangsu 223005, China.
| | - Xiaozhu Tang
- School of Medicine & Holistic Integrative Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China.
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2
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Yang Y, Lu Y, Wang Y, Wen X, Qi C, Piao W, Jin H. Current progress in strategies to profile transcriptomic m 6A modifications. Front Cell Dev Biol 2024; 12:1392159. [PMID: 39055651 PMCID: PMC11269109 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2024.1392159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2024] [Accepted: 06/18/2024] [Indexed: 07/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Various methods have been developed so far for detecting N 6-methyladenosine (m6A). The total m6A level or the m6A status at individual positions on mRNA can be detected and quantified through some sequencing-independent biochemical methods, such as LC/MS, SCARLET, SELECT, and m6A-ELISA. However, the m6A-detection techniques relying on high-throughput sequencing have more effectively advanced the understanding about biological significance of m6A-containing mRNA and m6A pathway at a transcriptomic level over the past decade. Various SGS-based (Second Generation Sequencing-based) methods with different detection principles have been widely employed for this purpose. These principles include m6A-enrichment using antibodies, discrimination of m6A from unmodified A-base by nucleases, a fusion protein strategy relying on RNA-editing enzymes, and marking m6A with chemical/biochemical reactions. Recently, TGS-based (Third Generation Sequencing-based) methods have brought a new trend by direct m6A-detection. This review first gives a brief introduction of current knowledge about m6A biogenesis and function, and then comprehensively describes m6A-profiling strategies including their principles, procedures, and features. This will guide users to pick appropriate methods according to research goals, give insights for developing novel techniques in varying areas, and continue to expand our boundary of knowledge on m6A.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuening Yang
- Laboratory of Genetics and Disorders, Key Laboratory of Molecular Medicine and Biotherapy, Aerospace Center Hospital, School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Yanming Lu
- Laboratory of Genetics and Disorders, Key Laboratory of Molecular Medicine and Biotherapy, Aerospace Center Hospital, School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Yan Wang
- Laboratory of Genetics and Disorders, Key Laboratory of Molecular Medicine and Biotherapy, Aerospace Center Hospital, School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Xianghui Wen
- Laboratory of Genetics and Disorders, Key Laboratory of Molecular Medicine and Biotherapy, Aerospace Center Hospital, School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Changhai Qi
- Department of Pathology, Aerospace Center Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Weilan Piao
- Laboratory of Genetics and Disorders, Key Laboratory of Molecular Medicine and Biotherapy, Aerospace Center Hospital, School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
- Advanced Technology Research Institute, Beijing Institute of Technology, Jinan, China
| | - Hua Jin
- Laboratory of Genetics and Disorders, Key Laboratory of Molecular Medicine and Biotherapy, Aerospace Center Hospital, School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
- Advanced Technology Research Institute, Beijing Institute of Technology, Jinan, China
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3
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Horner SM, Thompson MG. Challenges to mapping and defining m 6A function in viral RNA. RNA (NEW YORK, N.Y.) 2024; 30:482-490. [PMID: 38531643 PMCID: PMC11019751 DOI: 10.1261/rna.079959.124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024]
Abstract
Viral RNA molecules contain multiple layers of regulatory information. This includes features beyond the primary sequence, such as RNA structures and RNA modifications, including N6-methyladenosine (m6A). Many recent studies have identified the presence and location of m6A in viral RNA and have found diverse regulatory roles for this modification during viral infection. However, to date, viral m6A mapping strategies have limitations that prevent a complete understanding of the function of m6A on individual viral RNA molecules. While m6A sites have been profiled on bulk RNA from many viruses, the resulting m6A maps of viral RNAs described to date present a composite picture of m6A across viral RNA molecules in the infected cell. Thus, for most viruses, it is unknown if unique viral m6A profiles exist throughout infection, nor if they regulate specific viral life cycle stages. Here, we describe several challenges to defining the function of m6A in viral RNA molecules and provide a framework for future studies to help in the understanding of how m6A regulates viral infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stacy M Horner
- Department of Integrative Immunobiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA
- Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA
| | - Matthew G Thompson
- Department of Integrative Immunobiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA
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Tan L, Guo Z, Wang X, Kim DY, Li R. Utilization of nanopore direct RNA sequencing to analyze viral RNA modifications. mSystems 2024; 9:e0116323. [PMID: 38294229 PMCID: PMC10878088 DOI: 10.1128/msystems.01163-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 02/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Modifications on viral RNAs (vRNAs), either genomic RNAs or RNA transcripts, have complex effects on the viral life cycle and cellular responses to viral infection. The advent of Oxford Nanopore Technologies Direct RNA Sequencing provides a new strategy for studying RNA modifications. To this end, multiple computational tools have been developed, but a systemic evaluation of their performance in mapping vRNA modifications is lacking. Here, 10 computational tools were tested using the Sindbis virus (SINV) RNAs isolated from infected mammalian (BHK-21) or mosquito (C6/36) cells, with in vitro-transcribed RNAs serving as modification-free control. Three single-mode approaches were shown to be inapplicable in the viral context, and three out of seven comparative methods required cutoff adjustments to reduce false-positive predictions. Utilizing optimized cutoffs, an integrated analysis of comparative tools suggested that the intersected predictions of Tombo_com and xPore were significantly enriched compared with the background. Consequently, a pipeline integrating Tombo_com and xPore was proposed for vRNA modification detection; the performance of which was supported by N6-methyladenosine prediction in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 RNAs using publicly available data. When applied to SINV RNAs, this pipeline revealed more intensive modifications in subgenomic RNAs than in genomic RNAs. Modified uridines were frequently identified, exhibiting substantive overlapping between vRNAs generated in different cell lines. On the other hand, the interpretation of other modifications remained unclear, underlining the limitations of the current computational tools despite their notable potential.IMPORTANCEComputational approaches utilizing Oxford Nanopore Technologies Direct RNA Sequencing data were almost exclusively designed to map eukaryotic epitranscriptomes. Therefore, extra caution must be exercised when using these tools to detect vRNA modifications, as in most cases, vRNA modification profiles should be regarded as unknown epitranscriptomes without prior knowledge. Here, we comprehensively evaluated the performance of 10 computational tools in detecting vRNA modification sites. All tested single-mode methods failed to differentiate native and in vitro-transcribed samples. Using optimized cutoff values, seven tested comparative tools generated very different predictions. An integrated analysis showed significant enrichment of Tombo_com and xPore predictions against the background. A pipeline for vRNA modification detection was proposed accordingly and applied to Sindbis virus RNAs. In conclusion, our study underscores the need for the careful application of computational tools to analyze viral epitranscriptomics. It also offers insights into alphaviral RNA modifications, although further validation is required.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lu Tan
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Zhihao Guo
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Xiaoming Wang
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
| | - Dal Young Kim
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Runsheng Li
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- Tung Biomedical Sciences Centre, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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5
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Baek A, Rayhan A, Lee GE, Golconda S, Yu H, Kim S, Limbach PA, Addepalli B, Kim S. Mapping m 6A Sites on HIV-1 RNA Using Oligonucleotide LC-MS/MS. Methods Protoc 2024; 7:7. [PMID: 38251200 PMCID: PMC10801558 DOI: 10.3390/mps7010007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2023] [Revised: 12/12/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/23/2024] Open
Abstract
The biological significance of chemical modifications to the ribonucleic acid (RNA) of human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) has been recognized. However, our understanding of the site-specific and context-dependent roles of these chemical modifications remains limited, primarily due to the absence of nucleotide-resolution mapping of modification sites. In this study, we present a method for achieving nucleotide-resolution mapping of chemical modification sites on HIV-1 RNA using liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). LC-MS/MS, a powerful tool capable of directly analyzing native RNAs, has proven effective for mapping RNA modifications in small RNA molecules, including ribosomal RNA and transfer RNA. However, longer RNAs have posed challenges, such as the 9 Kb HIV-1 virion RNA, due to the complexity of and ambiguity in mass differences among RNase T1-cleaved RNA fragments in LC-MS/MS data. Here, we introduce a new target RNA enrichment method to isolate small local RNA fragments of HIV-1 RNA that potentially harbor site-specific N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modifications. In our initial trial, we used target-specific DNA probes only and encountered insufficient RNA fragmentation due to inefficient S1 digestion near the target site. Recognizing that inefficient S1 digestion by HIV-1 RNA is likely due to the formation of secondary structures in proximity to the target site, we designed multiple DNA probes annealing to various sites of HIV-1 RNA to better control the structures of RNA substrates for S1 digestion. The use of these non-target DNA probes significantly improved the isolation of more homogeneous target RNA fragments of approximately 50 bases in length. Oligonucleotide LC-MS/MS analysis of these isolated target RNA fragments successfully separated and detected both m6A-methylated and non-methylated oligomers at the two m6A-predicted sites. The principle of this new target enrichment strategy holds promise and should be broadly applicable to the analysis of any lengthy RNA that was previously deemed infeasible for investigation using oligonucleotide LC-MS/MS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice Baek
- Center for Retrovirus Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (A.B.); (G.-E.L.); (S.G.); (H.Y.); (S.K.)
- Department of Veterinary Biosciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Infectious Diseases Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Translational Data Analytics Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Asif Rayhan
- Rieveschl Laboratories for Mass Spectrometry, Department of Chemistry, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221, USA; (A.R.); (P.A.L.)
| | - Ga-Eun Lee
- Center for Retrovirus Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (A.B.); (G.-E.L.); (S.G.); (H.Y.); (S.K.)
- Department of Veterinary Biosciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Infectious Diseases Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Translational Data Analytics Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Sarah Golconda
- Center for Retrovirus Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (A.B.); (G.-E.L.); (S.G.); (H.Y.); (S.K.)
- Department of Veterinary Biosciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Infectious Diseases Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Translational Data Analytics Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Hannah Yu
- Center for Retrovirus Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (A.B.); (G.-E.L.); (S.G.); (H.Y.); (S.K.)
- Department of Veterinary Biosciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Infectious Diseases Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Translational Data Analytics Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Shihyoung Kim
- Center for Retrovirus Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (A.B.); (G.-E.L.); (S.G.); (H.Y.); (S.K.)
- Department of Veterinary Biosciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Infectious Diseases Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Translational Data Analytics Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Patrick A. Limbach
- Rieveschl Laboratories for Mass Spectrometry, Department of Chemistry, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221, USA; (A.R.); (P.A.L.)
| | - Balasubrahmanyam Addepalli
- Rieveschl Laboratories for Mass Spectrometry, Department of Chemistry, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221, USA; (A.R.); (P.A.L.)
| | - Sanggu Kim
- Center for Retrovirus Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (A.B.); (G.-E.L.); (S.G.); (H.Y.); (S.K.)
- Department of Veterinary Biosciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Infectious Diseases Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Translational Data Analytics Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
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Wang H, Zeng W, Huang X, Liu Z, Sun Y, Zhang L. MTTLm 6A: A multi-task transfer learning approach for base-resolution mRNA m 6A site prediction based on an improved transformer. MATHEMATICAL BIOSCIENCES AND ENGINEERING : MBE 2024; 21:272-299. [PMID: 38303423 DOI: 10.3934/mbe.2024013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is a crucial RNA modification involved in various biological activities. Computational methods have been developed for the detection of m6A sites in Saccharomyces cerevisiae at base-resolution due to their cost-effectiveness and efficiency. However, the generalization of these methods has been hindered by limited base-resolution datasets. Additionally, RMBase contains a vast number of low-resolution m6A sites for Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and base-resolution sites are often inferred from these low-resolution results through post-calibration. We propose MTTLm6A, a multi-task transfer learning approach for base-resolution mRNA m6A site prediction based on an improved transformer. First, the RNA sequences are encoded by using one-hot encoding. Then, we construct a multi-task model that combines a convolutional neural network with a multi-head-attention deep framework. This model not only detects low-resolution m6A sites, it also assigns reasonable probabilities to the predicted sites. Finally, we employ transfer learning to predict base-resolution m6A sites based on the low-resolution m6A sites. Experimental results on Saccharomyces cerevisiae m6A and Homo sapiens m1A data demonstrate that MTTLm6A respectively achieved area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) values of 77.13% and 92.9%, outperforming the state-of-the-art models. At the same time, it shows that the model has strong generalization ability. To enhance user convenience, we have made a user-friendly web server for MTTLm6A publicly available at http://47.242.23.141/MTTLm6A/index.php.
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Affiliation(s)
- Honglei Wang
- School of Information and Control Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China
- School of Information Engineering, Xuzhou College of Industrial Technology, Xuzhou, China
| | - Wenliang Zeng
- School of Information and Control Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China
| | - Xiaoling Huang
- School of Information and Control Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China
| | - Zhaoyang Liu
- School of Information and Control Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China
| | - Yanjing Sun
- School of Information and Control Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China
| | - Lin Zhang
- School of Information and Control Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China
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Pham K, Ho L, D'Incal CP, De Cock A, Berghe WV, Goethals P. Epigenetic analytical approaches in ecotoxicological aquatic research. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2023; 330:121737. [PMID: 37121302 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.121737] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2023] [Revised: 04/15/2023] [Accepted: 04/27/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
Environmental epigenetics has become a key research focus in global climate change studies and environmental pollutant investigations impacting aquatic ecosystems. Specifically, triggered by environmental stress conditions, intergenerational DNA methylation changes contribute to biological adaptive responses and survival of organisms to increase their tolerance towards these conditions. To critically review epigenetic analytical approaches in ecotoxicological aquatic research, we evaluated 78 publications reported over the past five years (2016-2021) that applied these methods to investigate the responses of aquatic organisms to environmental changes and pollution. The results show that DNA methylation appears to be the most robust epigenetic regulatory mark studied in aquatic animals. As such, multiple DNA methylation analysis methods have been developed in aquatic organisms, including enzyme restriction digestion-based and methyl-specific immunoprecipitation methods, and bisulfite (in)dependent sequencing strategies. In contrast, only a handful of aquatic studies, i.e. about 15%, have been focusing on histone variants and post-translational modifications due to the lack of species-specific affinity based immunological reagents, such as specific antibodies for chromatin immunoprecipitation applications. Similarly, ncRNA regulation remains as the least popular method used in the field of environmental epigenetics. Insights into the opportunities and challenges of the DNA methylation and histone variant analysis methods as well as decreasing costs of next generation sequencing approaches suggest that large-scale epigenetic environmental studies in model and non-model organisms will soon become available in the near future. Moreover, antibody-dependent and independent methods, such as mass spectrometry-based methods, can be used as an alternative epigenetic approach to characterize global changes of chromatin histone modifications in future aquatic research. Finally, a systematic guide for DNA methylation and histone variant methods is offered for ecotoxicological aquatic researchers to select the most relevant epigenetic analytical approach in their research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kim Pham
- Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, Ghent 9000, Belgium.
| | - Long Ho
- Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, Ghent 9000, Belgium
| | - Claudio Peter D'Incal
- Protein Chemistry, Proteomics and Epigenetic Signaling (PPES), Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Antwerp, 2610, Belgium
| | - Andrée De Cock
- Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, Ghent 9000, Belgium
| | - Wim Vanden Berghe
- Protein Chemistry, Proteomics and Epigenetic Signaling (PPES), Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Antwerp, 2610, Belgium
| | - Peter Goethals
- Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, Ghent 9000, Belgium
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Catacalos C, Krohannon A, Somalraju S, Meyer KD, Janga SC, Chakrabarti K. Epitranscriptomics in parasitic protists: Role of RNA chemical modifications in posttranscriptional gene regulation. PLoS Pathog 2022; 18:e1010972. [PMID: 36548245 PMCID: PMC9778586 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1010972] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
"Epitranscriptomics" is the new RNA code that represents an ensemble of posttranscriptional RNA chemical modifications, which can precisely coordinate gene expression and biological processes. There are several RNA base modifications, such as N6-methyladenosine (m6A), 5-methylcytosine (m5C), and pseudouridine (Ψ), etc. that play pivotal roles in fine-tuning gene expression in almost all eukaryotes and emerging evidences suggest that parasitic protists are no exception. In this review, we primarily focus on m6A, which is the most abundant epitranscriptomic mark and regulates numerous cellular processes, ranging from nuclear export, mRNA splicing, polyadenylation, stability, and translation. We highlight the universal features of spatiotemporal m6A RNA modifications in eukaryotic phylogeny, their homologs, and unique processes in 3 unicellular parasites-Plasmodium sp., Toxoplasma sp., and Trypanosoma sp. and some technological advances in this rapidly developing research area that can significantly improve our understandings of gene expression regulation in parasites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cassandra Catacalos
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Alexander Krohannon
- Department of BioHealth Informatics, School of Informatics and Computing, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), Indianapolis, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Sahiti Somalraju
- Department of BioHealth Informatics, School of Informatics and Computing, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), Indianapolis, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Kate D. Meyer
- Department of Biochemistry, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Sarath Chandra Janga
- Department of BioHealth Informatics, School of Informatics and Computing, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), Indianapolis, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Kausik Chakrabarti
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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9
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Affiliation(s)
- Miten Jain
- Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA.
| | | | | | - Mark Akeson
- University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA.
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10
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Hong A, Kim D, Kim VN, Chang H. Analyzing viral epitranscriptomes using nanopore direct RNA sequencing. J Microbiol 2022; 60:867-876. [PMID: 36001233 PMCID: PMC9400574 DOI: 10.1007/s12275-022-2324-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Revised: 08/04/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
RNA modifications are a common occurrence across all domains of life. Several chemical modifications, including N6-methyladenosine, have also been found in viral transcripts and viral RNA genomes. Some of the modifications increase the viral replication efficiency while also helping the virus to evade the host immune system. Nonetheless, there are numerous examples in which the host's RNA modification enzymes function as antiviral factors. Although established methods like MeRIP-seq and miCLIP can provide a transcriptome- wide overview of how viral RNA is modified, it is difficult to distinguish between the complex overlapping viral transcript isoforms using the short read-based techniques. Nanopore direct RNA sequencing (DRS) provides both long reads and direct signal readings, which may carry information about the modifications. Here, we describe a refined protocol for analyzing the RNA modifications in viral transcriptomes using nanopore technology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ari Hong
- Center for RNA Research, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea
- Interdisciplinary Program in Bioinformatics, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea
| | - Dongwan Kim
- Center for RNA Research, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea
- School of Biological Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea
| | - V Narry Kim
- Center for RNA Research, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea
- School of Biological Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyeshik Chang
- Center for RNA Research, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea.
- Interdisciplinary Program in Bioinformatics, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea.
- School of Biological Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea.
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Role of Epitranscriptomic and Epigenetic Modifications during the Lytic and Latent Phases of Herpesvirus Infections. Microorganisms 2022; 10:microorganisms10091754. [PMID: 36144356 PMCID: PMC9503318 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms10091754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2022] [Revised: 08/27/2022] [Accepted: 08/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Herpesviruses are double-stranded DNA viruses occurring at a high prevalence in the human population and are responsible for a wide array of clinical manifestations and diseases, from mild to severe. These viruses are classified in three subfamilies (Alpha-, Beta- and Gammaherpesvirinae), with eight members currently known to infect humans. Importantly, all herpesviruses can establish lifelong latent infections with symptomatic or asymptomatic lytic reactivations. Accumulating evidence suggest that chemical modifications of viral RNA and DNA during the lytic and latent phases of the infections caused by these viruses, are likely to play relevant roles in key aspects of the life cycle of these viruses by modulating and regulating their replication, establishment of latency and evasion of the host antiviral response. Here, we review and discuss current evidence regarding epitranscriptomic and epigenetic modifications of herpesviruses and how these can influence their life cycles. While epitranscriptomic modifications such as m6A are the most studied to date and relate to positive effects over the replication of herpesviruses, epigenetic modifications of the viral genome are generally associated with defense mechanisms of the host cells to suppress viral gene transcription. However, herpesviruses can modulate these modifications to their own benefit to persist in the host, undergo latency and sporadically reactivate.
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