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Chemical and structural effects of base modifications in messenger RNA

Nature volume 541, pages 339–346 (2017)Cite this article

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Abstract

A growing number of nucleobase modifications in messenger RNA have been revealed through advances in detection and RNA sequencing. Although some of the biochemical pathways that involve modified bases have been identified, research into the world of RNA modification — the epitranscriptome — is still in an early phase. A variety of chemical tools are being used to characterize base modifications, and the structural effects of known base modifications on RNA pairing, thermodynamics and folding are being determined in relation to their putative biological roles.

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Figure 1: Structures of base-modified nucleosides known to be present at internal positions in mRNA.
Figure 2: Sequencing by chemical modification for the location of modified bases.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the US National Institutes of Health (GM110050 and GM106067) for support. E.M.H. acknowledges the US National Science Foundation for a Predoctoral Fellowship.

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  1. Department of Chemistry, Wellesley College, Wellesley, 02481, Massachusetts, USA

    Emily M. Harcourt

  2. Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, 94305, California, USA

    Anna M. Kietrys & Eric T. Kool

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Harcourt, E., Kietrys, A. & Kool, E. Chemical and structural effects of base modifications in messenger RNA. Nature 541, 339–346 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature21351

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