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Published on: September 7, 2017
RNA methylation by Dnmt2 protects transfer RNAs against stress-induced cleavage
Matthias Schaefer1, Tim Pollex, Katharina Hanna
1Division of Epigenetics, DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg 69120, Germany.
Abstract:
Dnmt2 proteins are the most conserved members of the DNA methyltransferase enzyme family, but their substrate specificity and biological functions have been a subject of controversy. We show here that, in addition to tRNA(Asp-GTC), tRNA(Val-AAC) and tRNA(Gly-GCC) are also methylated by Dnmt2. Drosophila Dnmt2 mutants showed reduced viability under stress conditions, and Dnmt2 relocalized to stress granules following heat shock. Strikingly, stress-induced cleavage of tRNAs was Dnmt2-dependent, and Dnmt2-mediated methylation protected tRNAs against ribonuclease cleavage. These results uncover a novel biological function of Dnmt2-mediated tRNA methylation, and suggest a role for Dnmt2 enzymes during the biogenesis of tRNA-derived small RNAs.
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