m6A-Atlas: a comprehensive knowledgebase for unraveling the N6-methyladenosine (m6A) epitranscriptome

N-6-Methyladenosine (m(6)A) is the most prevalent RNA modification on mRNAs and lncRNAs. It plays a pivotal role during various biological processes and disease pathogenesis. We present here a comprehensive knowledgebase, m(6)A-Atlas, for unraveling the m(6)A epitranscriptome. Compared to existing databases, m(6)A-Atlas features a high-confidence collection of 442 162 reliable m(6)A sites identified from seven base-resolution technologies and the quantitative (rather than binary) epitranscriptome profiles estimated from 1363 high-throughput sequencing samples. It also offers novel features, such as; the conservation of m(6)A sites among seven vertebrate species (including human, mouse and chimp), the m(6)A epitranscriptomes of 10 virus species (including HIV, KSHV and DENV), the putative biological functions of individual m(6)A sites predicted from epitranscriptome data, and the potential pathogenesis of m(6)A sites inferred from disease-associated genetic mutations that can directly destroy m(6)A directing sequence motifs. A user-friendly graphical user interface was constructed to support the query, visualization and sharing of the m(6)A epitranscriptomes annotated with sites specifying their interaction with post-transcriptional machinery (RBPbinding, microRNA interaction and splicing sites) and interactively display the landscape of multiple RNA modifications. These resources provide fresh opportunities for unraveling the m(6)A epitranscriptomes. m(6)A-Atlas is freely accessible at: www.xjtlu.edu.cn/biologicalsciences/atlas.