Journal
EMBO REPORTS
Volume 18, Issue 9, Pages 1631-1645Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.15252/embr.201743967
Keywords
epigenetics; G.A base pairs; k-turn; RNA methylation; signal recognition particle
Categories
Funding
- Cancer Research UK (CRUK) [A18604]
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council [BB/E001777/1, B17092, BB/P001491/1] Funding Source: researchfish
- Cancer Research UK [18604, 11722] Funding Source: researchfish
- Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council [EP/J017094/1] Funding Source: researchfish
- EPSRC [EP/J017094/1] Funding Source: UKRI
Ask authors/readers for more resources
N-6-methyladenine is the most widespread mRNA modification. A subset of human box C/D snoRNA species have target GAC sequences that lead to formation of N-6-methyladenine at a key trans Hoogsteen-sugar A.G base pair, of which half are methylated in vivo. The GAC target is conserved only in those that are methylated. Methylation prevents binding of the 15.5-kDa protein and the induced folding of the RNA. Thus, the assembly of the box C/D snoRNP could in principle be regulated by RNA methylation at its critical first stage. Crystallography reveals that N-6-methylation of adenine prevents the formation of trans Hoogsteen-sugar A.G base pairs, explaining why the box C/D RNA cannot adopt its kinked conformation. More generally, our data indicate that sheared A.G base pairs (but not Watson-Crick base pairs) are more susceptible to disruption by N(6)mA methylation and are therefore possible regulatory sites. The human signal recognition particle RNA and many related Alu retrotransposon RNA species are also methylated at N6 of an adenine that forms a sheared base pair with guanine and mediates a key tertiary interaction.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available