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1.
M D Been  T R Cech 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》1988,239(4846):1412-1416
A catalytic RNA (ribozyme) derived from an intervening sequence (IVS) RNA of Tetrahymena thermophila will catalyze an RNA polymerization reaction in which pentacytidylic acid (C5) is extended by the successive addition of mononucleotides derived from a guanylyl-(3',5')-nucleotide (GpN). Cytidines or uridines are added to C5 to generate chain lengths of 10 to 11 nucleotides, with longer products being generated at greatly reduced efficiency. The reaction is analogous to that catalyzed by a replicase with C5 acting as the primer, GpNs as the nucleoside triphosphates, and a sequence in the ribozyme providing a template. The demonstration that an RNA enzyme can catalyze net elongation of an RNA primer supports theories of prebiotic RNA self-replication.  相似文献   

2.
A critical event in the origin of life is thought to have been the emergence of an RNA molecule capable of replicating a primordial RNA "genome." Here we describe the evolution and engineering of an RNA polymerase ribozyme capable of synthesizing RNAs of up to 95 nucleotides in length. To overcome its sequence dependence, we recombined traits evolved separately in different ribozyme lineages. This yielded a more general polymerase ribozyme that was able to synthesize a wider spectrum of RNA sequences, as we demonstrate by the accurate synthesis of an enzymatically active RNA, a hammerhead endonuclease ribozyme. This recapitulates a central aspect of an RNA-based genetic system: the RNA-catalyzed synthesis of an active ribozyme from an RNA template.  相似文献   

3.
The intervening sequence of the ribosomal RNA precursor of Tetrahymena is a catalytic RNA molecule, or ribozyme. Acting as a sequence-specific endoribonuclease, it cleaves single-stranded RNA substrates with concomitant addition of guanosine. The chemistry of the reaction has now been studied by introduction of a single phosphorothioate in the substrate RNA at the cleavage site. Kinetic studies show no significant effect of this substitution on kcat (rate constant) or Km (Michaelis constant), providing evidence that some step other than the chemical step is rate-limiting. Product analysis reveals that the reaction proceeds with inversion of configuration at phosphorus, consistent with an in-line, SN2 (P) mechanism. Thus, the ribozyme reaction is in the same mechanistic category as the individual displacement reactions catalyzed by protein nucleotidyltransferases, phosphotransferases, and nucleases.  相似文献   

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6.
RNA-dependent RNA polymerases,viruses, and RNA silencing   总被引:1,自引:0,他引:1  
Ahlquist P 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》2002,296(5571):1270-1273
Most viruses have RNA genomes that are replicated and transcribed into messenger RNA by viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerases (RdRps), usually in concert with other viral and host factors. Many, if not most, eukaryotes also encode putative RdRps that have been implicated in sequence-specific, RNA-triggered gene silencing. Although the viral and cellular RdRps have no sequence homology, they share functional similarities such as copying messenger RNA templates and intercellular spread of the amplified sequences. Better understanding of viral and host RdRps will improve our ability to control viruses and to use RNA silencing and viruses as tools for research, biotechnology, and medicine.  相似文献   

7.
We have studied the correlation between structural dynamics and function of the hairpin ribozyme. The enzyme-substrate complex exists in either docked (active) or undocked (inactive) conformations. Using single-molecule fluorescence methods, we found complex structural dynamics with four docked states of distinct stabilities and a strong memory effect where each molecule rarely switches between different docked states. We also found substrate cleavage to be rate-limited by a combination of conformational transitions and reversible chemistry equilibrium. The complex structural dynamics quantitatively explain the heterogeneous cleavage kinetics common to many catalytic RNAs. The intimate coupling of structural dynamics and function is likely a general phenomenon for RNA.  相似文献   

8.
The hairpin ribozyme catalyzes sequence-specific cleavage of RNA through transesterification of the scissile phosphate. Vanadate has previously been used as a transition state mimic of protein enzymes that catalyze the same reaction. Comparison of the 2.2 angstrom resolution structure of a vanadate-hairpin ribozyme complex with structures of precursor and product complexes reveals a rigid active site that makes more hydrogen bonds to the transition state than to the precursor or product. Because of the paucity of RNA functional groups capable of general acid-base or electrostatic catalysis, transition state stabilization is likely to be an important catalytic strategy for ribozymes.  相似文献   

9.
Autoreactive epitope defined as the anticodon region of alanine transfer RNA   总被引:11,自引:0,他引:11  
Autoantibodies to aminoacyl-transfer RNA (tRNA) synthetases are common in the human autoimmune diseases polymyositis and dermatomyositis. Sera of the PL-12 specificity contain separate antibodies reacting with alanyl-tRNA synthetase and alanine tRNA (tRNAAla). The antibodies to tRNA recognize at least six distinguishable human tRNAAla species grouped into two sequence families. The antibody-reactive determinants on the tRNA were identified through ribonuclease protection and oligonucleotide binding experiments. The antibody binding site is a seven- to nine-nucleotide sequence containing the anticodon loop and requires an intact anticodon. No requirement for anticodon stem structure or sequence is observed, although the 5' portion of the stem is protected from nuclease attack. Antibodies from several patients appear to share the same specificitym, indicating that the antibodies are induced by a unique sequence feature in the immunogen.  相似文献   

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11.
The glmS ribozyme is the only natural catalytic RNA known to require a small-molecule activator for catalysis. This catalytic RNA functions as a riboswitch, with activator-dependent RNA cleavage regulating glmS messenger RNA expression. We report crystal structures of the glmS ribozyme in precleavage states that are unliganded or bound to the competitive inhibitor glucose-6-phosphate and in the postcleavage state. All structures superimpose closely, revealing a remarkably rigid RNA that contains a preformed active and coenzyme-binding site. Unlike other riboswitches, the glmS ribozyme binds its activator in an open, solvent-accessible pocket. Our structures suggest that the amine group of the glmS ribozyme-bound coenzyme performs general acid-base and electrostatic catalysis.  相似文献   

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Life originated, according to the RNA World hypothesis, from self-replicating ribozymes that catalyzed ligation of RNA fragments. We have solved the 2.6 angstrom crystal structure of a ligase ribozyme that catalyzes regiospecific formation of a 5' to 3' phosphodiester bond between the 5'-triphosphate and the 3'-hydroxyl termini of two RNA fragments. Invariant residues form tertiary contacts that stabilize a flexible stem of the ribozyme at the ligation site, where an essential magnesium ion coordinates three phosphates. The structure of the active site permits us to suggest how transition-state stabilization and a general base may catalyze the ligation reaction required for prebiotic RNA assembly.  相似文献   

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15.
Defining the inside and outside of a catalytic RNA molecule   总被引:42,自引:0,他引:42  
Ribozymes are RNA molecules that catalyze biochemical reactions. Fe(II)-EDTA, a solvent-based reagent which cleaves both double- and single-stranded RNA, was used to investigate the structure of the Tetrahymena ribozyme. Regions of cleavage alternate with regions of substantial protection along the entire RNA molecule. In particular, most of the catalytic core shows greatly reduced cleavage. These data constitute experimental evidence that an RNA enzyme, like a protein enzyme, has an interior and an exterior. Determination of positions where the phosphodiester backbone of the RNA is on the inside or on the outside of the molecule provides major constraints for modeling the three-dimensional structure of the Tetrahymena ribozyme. This approach should be generally informative for structured RNA molecules.  相似文献   

16.
The RNA world hypothesis regarding the early evolution of life relies on the premise that some RNA sequences can catalyze RNA replication. In support of this conjecture, we describe here an RNA molecule that catalyzes the type of polymerization needed for RNA replication. The ribozyme uses nucleoside triphosphates and the coding information of an RNA template to extend an RNA primer by the successive addition of up to 14 nucleotides-more than a complete turn of an RNA helix. Its polymerization activity is general in terms of the sequence and the length of the primer and template RNAs, provided that the 3' terminus of the primer pairs with the template. Its polymerization is also quite accurate: when primers extended by 11 nucleotides were cloned and sequenced, 1088 of 1100 sequenced nucleotides matched the template.  相似文献   

17.
A "switch" mutant of the Arc repressor homodimer was constructed by interchanging the sequence positions of a hydrophobic core residue, leucine 12, and an adjacent surface polar residue, asparagine 11, in each strand of an intersubunit beta sheet. The mutant protein adopts a fold in which each beta strand is replaced by a right-handed helix and side chains in this region undergo significant repacking. The observed structural changes allow the protein to maintain solvent exposure of polar side chains and optimal burial of hydrophobic side chains. These results suggest that new protein folds can evolve from existing folds without drastic or large-scale mutagenesis.  相似文献   

18.
Visualizing the higher order folding of a catalytic RNA molecule   总被引:26,自引:0,他引:26  
The higher order folding process of the catalytic RNA derived from the self-splicing intron of Tetrahymena thermophila was monitored with the use of Fe(II)-EDTA-induced free radical chemistry. The overall tertiary structure of the RNA molecule forms cooperatively with the uptake of at least three magnesium ions. Local folding transitions display different metal ion dependencies, suggesting that the RNA tertiary structure assembles through a specific folding intermediate before the catalytic core is formed. Enzymatic activity, assayed with an RNA substrate that is complementary to the catalytic RNA active site, coincides with the cooperative structural transition. The higher order RNA foldings produced by Mg(II), Ca(II), and Sr(II) are similar; however, only the Mg(II)-stabilized RNA is catalytically active. Thus, these results directly demonstrate that divalent metal ions participate in general folding of the ribozyme tertiary structure, and further indicate a more specific involvement of Mg(II) in catalysis.  相似文献   

19.
A J Zaug  T R Cech 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》1985,229(4718):1060-1064
The intervening sequence RNA excised from the ribosomal RNA precursor of Tetrahymena forms linear and circular oligomers when exposed to a heating-cooling treatment in vitro. The reactions require no protein or external energy source. Oligomerization is different from other self-catalyzed reactions of the intervening sequence RNA in that it involves intermolecular rather than intramolecular recombination, producing RNA molecules that are substantially larger than the original. The observation that RNA molecules can catalyze their own oligomerization has possible implications for the evolution of chromosomes and for the replicative cycle of plant viroids and virus-associated RNA's.  相似文献   

20.
甘薯块根总RNA提取与psy基因保守序列的克隆   总被引:3,自引:1,他引:3  
甘薯块根富含的次生物质严重干扰了总RNA的提取.本试验采用 4种方法对甘薯块根总RNA进行提取,筛选出 1种最佳的改进方法,排除了甘薯块根中淀粉、多糖、多酚以及纤维等次生物质的干扰,提取到了高质量的甘薯块根总RNA.所提取的RNA得率较高,完整性好,纯度高,以其逆转录的cDNA为模板,克隆出了甘薯psy基因 422bp的保守序列.  相似文献   

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