M⁶ A modification: A mechanism for protecting hematopoietic development in mammals

N⁶ -methyladenosine (m⁶ A) is one of the most common internal modifications in messenger RNA, which is necessary for cell physiological activities. A recent study shows that during mammalian hematopoietic development, loss of m⁶ A modification leads to the aberrant production of double-stranded RNA, which results in the abnormal activation of innate immune response, and ultimately leads to hematopoietic failure. Accordingly, m⁶ A modification provide us an attractive direction for us to understand mammalian hematopoietic development and innate immune response.