YBX1 is selectively required for maintaining myeloid leukemia cell survival by regulating mRNA stability in an m6A-dependent manner [SLAM-seq]

we show that YBX1 is specifically required for maintaining myeloid leukemia cell survival but is dispensable for normal hematopoiesis. We found that expression of YBX1 is significantly upregulated in myeloid leukemia cells, and deletion of YBX1 significantly induces apoptosis, coupled with reduced proliferation and impaired leukemic capacity of primary human and mouse acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells in vitro and in vivo. Loss of YBX1 does not obviously affect normal hematopoiesis. Mechanistically, YBX1 interacts with IGF2BPs and stabilizes m6A-tagged RNA. Moreover, YBX1 deficiency promotes mRNA decay in an m6A-dependent manner, which contributes to the defective survival due to YBX1 deletion. Thus, our findings uncover a selective and critical role of YBX1 in maintaining myeloid leukemia survival that might provide a rationale for the therapeutic targeting of YBX1 in myeloid leukemia. Overall design: SLAMseq of leukemia cells from WT and YBX1-/- mice