Epitranscriptomics and Non-coding RNAs in Cancer

Dear Colleagues,

Over the last several decades, breakthroughs in genetic sequencing and biotechnologies have led to identifying genes involved in the shifting cellular biology that characterizes hallmark cancer processes. Therefore, the activities of these genes must be tightly regulated to circumvent disease. One mechanism by which the cells exert control over gene activity is through finely tuned post-transcriptional modifications. Overall, there are greater than 150 such RNA modifications, including nucleotide substitutions (e.g., A-to-I, C-to-U), methylation (e.g., m6A, m1A, m5C, hm5C, 2'OMe), and pseudourylation (Ψ). The scope of "epitranscriptomics" research is to examine the consequences of such RNA modifications in human biology and disease. With the budding of exciting biotechnologies, such as high-throughput sequencing, researchers can better pinpoint epitranscriptomics modifications, thereby contributing to the expansion of this field. In particular, epitranscriptomics research has rapidly grown in the area that examines writers, readers, and erasers of various RNA modifications.

Post-transcriptional modifications affect both the coding and non-coding genome, with the majority of the genome being categorized as the latter. These non-coding regions were once thought to encode for "transcriptional noise," but perspectives have shifted over the last few decades. It is now understood that these non-coding genes have critical functions in regulating gene expression and cellular activity. Consequently, it is not surprising that perturbations within the non-coding genome have contributed to the pathology of many human diseases, including cancer. Therefore, the expression and activity of these non-coding genes must be tightly regulated.

This Special Issue in Genes will encompass both review and original research articles by experts in the field of epitranscriptomics and non-coding genetics, with a primary focus on cancer pathogenesis. These articles should highlight the progression and inherent challenges of these innovative fields. Moreover, this Special Issue aims to include epitranscriptome bioinformatics, including but not limited to novel software and computational approaches for the study of non-coding genetics and epitranscriptomics in cancer.

Dr. Mario Acunzo
Dr. Giovanni Nigita
Guest Editors

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