RNA A-to-I editing, environmental exposure, and human diseases

Abstract

Epigenetic modifications have gained attention since they can be potentially changed with environmental stimuli and can be associated with adverse health outcomes. Epitranscriptome field has begun to attract attention with several aspects since RNA modifications have been linked with critical biological processes and implicated in diseases. Several RNA modifications have been identified as reversible indicating the dynamic features of modification which can be altered by environmental cues. Currently, we know more than 150 RNA modifications in different organisms and on different bases which are modified by various chemical groups. RNA editing, which is one of the RNA modifications, occurs after transcription, which results in RNA sequence different from its corresponding DNA sequence. Emerging evidence reveals the functions of RNA editing as well as the association between RNA editing and diseases. However, the RNA editing field is beginning to grow up and needs more empirical evidence in regard to disease and toxicology. Thus, this review aims to provide the current evidence-based studies on RNA editing modifying genes for genotoxicity and cancer. The review presented the association between environmental xenobiotics exposure and RNA editing modifying genes and focused on the association between the expression of RNA editing modifying genes and cancer. Furthermore, we discussed the future directions of scientific studies in the area of RNA modifications, especially in the RNA editing field, and provided a knowledge-based framework for further studies.

Keywords:

• RNA editing
• A-to-I
• RNA modification
• environmental exposure
• disease

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Prof. Dr. Murat Belivermiş and Prof. Dr. Önder Kılıç from Istanbul University, Turkey for their critical internal review of the manuscript and helpful comments. Their suggestions were helpful and contributed to the clarity and accuracy of our publication. In addition, the authors gratefully acknowledge the time and efforts of the independent reviewers selected by the editor. Their valuable comments and suggestions helped improve the final manuscript.

Declaration of interest

The authors declare to have no conflict of interest. No funding was received specifically for this project. This critical review was conducted during the normal course of the authors’ employment. No funds were used to prepare the review. This review is the professional work of the authors and the views expressed are not necessarily the views of their employers. None of the authors have appeared during the last 10 years in any regulatory or legal proceedings related to the contents of this paper.

Supplemental Material

Supplemental material for this article is available online https://doi.org/10.1080/10408444.2021.1953438.