A new modification for mammalian messenger RNA

Abstract

The discovery of multiple RNA modifications in the past few years has broadened our views of the structures and potential functions of RNA species, but deciphering which modifications are made where and how remains a challenge. A new study by Xu et al. applies a combination of mass spectrometry, biochemistry, genetics, and cellular biology tools to reveal the two mammalian methyltransferases that are responsible for m3C installation in tRNA and a third that mediates the previously unknown installation of m3C in mammalian mRNA.