Linking RNA methylation to structure: a biophysical perspective

Recent epitranscriptomic studies show that ribonucleic acids (RNAs) are coated with an array of chemical modifications that dictate their cellular fate. Genetic, biochemical, and genomic approaches have been employed to elucidate the molecular details of RNA methylation, one of the most prevalent types of RNA modifications with significant implications for health and disease. Various biochemical approaches have been developed to identify RNA methylations both at the global and nucleotide resolution levels. However, simpler detection methods are needed to assess the global methylation status of synthetic or cellular RNAs. Although significant progress has been made in elucidating the factors involved in writing, erasing, or reading methylated epitopes or structures, the impact of these methyl moieties on the secondary structure of RNAs or macromolecular interactions remains to be fully understood. Typically, biophysical approaches, such as Fourier transformed-infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, circular dichroism (CD), and Raman spectroscopy, have been used to study the structures and interactions of macromolecules, including DNA and proteins. Although RNAs harbor similar chemical modifications or structure-mediated functions, the number of RNA studies that employ biophysical approaches is scarce. In this viewpoint article, we present a biophysical perspective that links RNA methylation to structure and propose that FT-IR analyses can be employed to examine global changes in the abundance of cellular RNA m⁶A marks. Additionally, we discuss the potential applications of biophysical approaches that may be employed to gain insight into methylation-mediated changes in RNA structures.