Onur Akkuş
Current Organizations / Institutes
The organizations/institutes from the scholar's latest article
Research Subjects
Research Interests
Onur Akkuş has a total of 5 co-authors. Here are the top co-authors by number of shared publications:
- Azime Akçaöz-Alasar
Noncoding RNA Laboratory, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, İzmir Institute of Technology, 35430 Izmir, Türkiye
1 shared publication - Buket Sağlam
Noncoding RNA Laboratory, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, İzmir Institute of Technology, 35430 Izmir, Türkiye
1 shared publication - Bünyamin Akgül
İzmir Institute of Technology
1 shared publication - Cagatay Ceylan
Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Izmir Institute of Technology, Urla, Türkiye
1 shared publication - Günnur Güler
Department of Physics, Izmir Institute of Technology, Izmir, TURKEY
1 shared publication
Latest Publications
- Open Access
An Investigation of RNA Methylations with Biophysical Approaches in a Cervical Cancer Cell Model
RNA methylation adds a second layer of genetic information that dictates the post-transcriptional fate of RNAs. Although various methods exist that enable the analysis of RNA methylation in a site-specific or transcriptome-wide manner, whether biophysical approaches can be employed to such analyses is unexplored. In this study, Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy are employed to examine the methylation status of both synthetic and cellular RNAs. The results show that FT-IR spectroscopy is perfectly capable of quantitatively distinguishing synthetic m6A-methylated RNAs from un-methylated ones. Subsequently, FT-IR spectroscopy is successfully employed to assess the changes in the extent of total RNA methylation upon the knockdown of the m6A writer, METTL3, in HeLa cells. In addition, the same approach is shown to accurately detect reduction in total RNA methylation upon the treatment of HeLa cells with tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α). It is also demonstrated that m1A and m6A methylation induce quite a distinct secondary structure on RNAs, as evident from CD spectra. These results strongly suggest that both FT-IR and CD spectroscopy methods can be exploited to uncover biophysical properties impinged on RNAs by methyl moieties, providing a fast, convenient and cheap alternative to the existing methods.
Open AccessAn Investigation of RNA Methylations with Biophysical Approaches in a Cervical Cancer Cell Model
RNA methylation adds a second layer of genetic information that dictates the post-transcriptional fate of RNAs. Although various methods exist that enable the analysis of RNA methylation in a site-specific or transcriptome-wide manner, whether biophysical approaches can be employed to such analyses is unexplored. In this study, Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy are employed to examine the methylation status of both synthetic and cellular RNAs. The results show that FT-IR spectroscopy is perfectly capable of quantitatively distinguishing synthetic m6A-methylated RNAs from un-methylated ones. Subsequently, FT-IR spectroscopy is successfully employed to assess the changes in the extent of total RNA methylation upon the knockdown of the m6A writer, METTL3, in HeLa cells. In addition, the same approach is shown to accurately detect reduction in total RNA methylation upon the treatment of HeLa cells with tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α). It is also demonstrated that m1A and m6A methylation induce quite a distinct secondary structure on RNAs, as evident from CD spectra. These results strongly suggest that both FT-IR and CD spectroscopy methods can be exploited to uncover biophysical properties impinged on RNAs by methyl moieties, providing a fast, convenient and cheap alternative to the existing methods.