Background: RNA modifications are widely detected in cells and are involved in RNA structural stabilization and regulation of gene expression. In cancer cells, RNA modifications are altered, resulting in abnormal expression of numerous genes and promoting cancer growth. N1-methyladenosine (m¹A), N6-methyladenosine (m⁶A), N3-methylcytosine (m³C), 5-methylcytosine (m⁵C), 7-methylguanosine (m⁷G), and N4-acetylcytidine (ac⁴C) have been reported as RNA modifications affecting gene expression.

Aim: In this review, the function of m⁶A in pancreatic cancer is mainly described, and the current status and prospects of RNA modifications are discussed.

Methodology: We summarize recent reports on m⁶A writers METTL3, METTL5, METTL14, and METTL16; m⁶A readers IGF2BP1, IGF2BP2, IGF2BP3, YTHDF1, YTHDF2, and YTHDF3; and m⁶A erasers ALKBH5 and FTO.

Results: RNA modifications are written to the RNA by the writer, and the reader binds to the RNA modification, causing gene expression to increase or decrease. Gene expression is also regulated by the removal of RNA modifications by the eraser. Moreover, our recent investigation into m⁶A modifications in pancreatic cancer has led to the identification of several promising candidate biomarkers, highlighting the potential role of epitranscriptomic regulation in tumorigenesis.

Conclusion: These findings suggest that further exploration of RNA modification functions may facilitate the identification of novel biomarker and therapeutic target molecules for pancreatic cancer.

Keywords: METTL3; RNA modifications; TCEAL8; m6A; pancreatic cancer.

© 2025 The Author(s). Cancer Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

背景： RNA修饰在细胞中广泛存在，并参与RNA结构稳定和基因表达调控。在癌细胞中，RNA修饰发生改变，导致众多基因的异常表达并促进癌症生长。N1-甲基腺苷（m¹A）、N6-甲基腺苷（m⁶A）、N3-甲基胞苷（m³C）、5-甲基胞苷（m⁵C）、7-甲基鸟苷（m⁷G）和N4-乙酰胞苷（ac⁴C）已被报道为影响基因表达的RNA修饰。

目的： 在这篇综述中，主要描述了m⁶A在胰腺癌中的功能，并讨论了当前RNA修饰的研究现状和前景。

方法： 我们总结了最近关于m⁶A书写者METTL3、METTL5、METTL14和METTL16；m⁶A阅读者IGF2BP1、IGF2BP2、IGF2BP3、YTHDF1、YTHDF2和YTHDF3；以及m⁶A擦除者ALKBH5和FTO的报告。

结果： RNA修饰由书写者写入RNA，阅读者结合到RNA修饰上，导致基因表达增加或减少。此外，擦除者的去除也会调节基因表达。而且，我们最近对胰腺癌中m⁶A修饰的研究发现了多个有前景的候选生物标志物，突显了表转录组调控在肿瘤发生中的潜在作用。

结论： 这些发现表明，进一步探索RNA修饰的功能可能会促进胰腺癌中新型生物标志物和治疗靶标分子的识别。

关键词： METTL3；RNA修饰；TCEAL8；m6A；胰腺癌。