m6A RNA modification modulates gene expression and cancer-related pathways in clear cell renal cell carcinoma

Abstract

Aim: To systematically profile the global m6A modification pattern in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). Methods: m6A modification patterns in ccRCC and normal tissues were described via m6A sequencing and RNA sequencing, followed by bioinformatics analysis. m6A-related RNAs were immunoprecipitated and validated by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). Results: In total, 6919 new m6A peaks appeared with the disappearance of 5020 peaks in ccRCC samples. The unique m6A-related genes in ccRCC were associated with cancer-related pathways. We identified differentially expressed mRNA transcripts with hyper-methylated or hypo-methylated m6A peaks in ccRCC. Conclusion: This study presented the first m6A transcriptome-wide map of human ccRCC, which may shed lights on possible mechanisms of m6A-mediated gene expression regulation.