Comprehensive Profiling of <i>N</i> <sup>6</sup> ‐methyladnosine (m <sup>6</sup> A) Readouts Reveals Novel m <sup>6</sup> A Readers That Regulate Human Embryonic Stem Cell Differentiation
N<sup>6</sup>-methyladenosine (m<sup>6</sup>A) modification constitutes a crucial layer of post-transcriptional regulations, but the landscape of its downstream readout effects remains less comprehensively understood. Therefore, we systematically assess the readout effects of m<sup>6</sup>A on mRNA half-life, translation efficiency, and alternative splicing across five cell lines (A549, HEK293T, HUVEC, JURKAT, and human embryonic stem cells (hESCs)) using actinomycin D-disrupted temporal transcriptome, ribosome sequencing, and ultra-high-depth transcriptome sequencing, respectively. Our analysis, coupled with the integration of public and newly profiled m<sup>6</sup>A methylome data, reveals high cell type specificity in m<sup>6</sup>A readouts where m<sup>6</sup>A level alone is insufficient to predict m<sup>6</sup>A readouts. Nonetheless, machine learning models focusing on RNA-binding protein (RBP) binding context can effectively predict the readouts and prioritize four novel m<sup>6</sup>A-associated proteins (FUBP3, FXR2, L1TD1, and DDX6). Their m<sup>6</sup>A-binding ability is validated by m<sup>6</sup>A RNA pull-down, transcriptome-wide binding site mapping, and electrophoretic mobility shift assay, while FUBP3 and L1TD1 are further suggested as m<sup>6</sup>A readers regulating mRNA stability based on half-life profiling of knockout cells. Finally, FUBP3, FXR2, and L1TD1 are demonstrated to regulate hESC differentiation without affecting self-renewal. Together, this study bridges the gap in understanding m<sup>6</sup>A functional readouts and lays the groundwork for future research on m<sup>6</sup>A-mediated stem cell fate decisions.
Authors
- Jiaxuan Wang
- Ni An (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7332-8654)
- Rucong Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3472-9807)
- Zibaguli Wubulikasimu
- Tianyuan Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9104-0830)
- Z. Huang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3187-5681)
- Jiaqi Huang
- Yuan Zhou
- Rui Fan
- Wei Kong
- Yang Li
- Wanqing Zhao
Institutions
- Army Medical University (CN)
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College (CN)
- Peking University (CN)
- National Health and Family Planning Commission (CN)
- Daping Hospital (CN)
- National Institute of Hospital Administration (CN)
- Peking University Third Hospital (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Advanced Science
- Published
- 2026-01-20
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202510075
- Primary Topic
- RNA modifications and cancer
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Baidu
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- Peking University
- Peking University Health Science Center