N6-methyladenosine modification of hepatitis B virus RNA differentially regulates the viral life cycle.

ABSTRACT: N6-methyladenosine (m⁶A) RNA methylation is the most abundant epitranscriptomic modification of eukaryotic messenger RNAs (mRNAs). Previous reports have found m⁶A on both cellular and viral transcripts and defined its role in regulating numerous biological processes, including viral infection. Here, we show that m⁶A and its associated machinery regulate the life cycle of hepatitis B virus (HBV). HBV is a DNA virus that completes its life cycle via an RNA intermediate, termed pregenomic RNA (pgRNA). Silencing of enzymes that catalyze the addition of m⁶A to RNA resulted in increased HBV protein expression, but overall reduced reverse transcription of the pgRNA. We mapped the m⁶A site in the HBV RNA and found that a conserved m

SUBMITTER: Imam H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6126736 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature