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RNA Structure (rna + structure)
Selected AbstractsElectrochemically Induced Modulation of the Catalytic Activity of a Reversible Redoxsensitive RiboswitchELECTROANALYSIS, Issue 9 2008Denise Strohbach Abstract Over the past decade, RNA conformation has been shown to respond to external stimuli. Thus, dependent on the presence of a high affinity ligand, specifically designed ribozymes can be regulated in a classical allosteric way. In this scenario, a binding event in one part of the RNA structure induces conformational changes in a separated part, which constitutes the catalytic centre. As a result activity is switched on (positive regulation) or off (negative regulation). We have developed a hairpin aptazyme responding to flavine mononucleotide (FMN). Ribozyme activity is dependent on binding of FMN and thus is switched on in the presence of FMN in its oxidized form. Under reducing conditions, however, FMN changes its molecular geometry, which is associated with loss of binding and consequently down-regulation of ribozyme activity. While in previous experiments sodium dithionite was used for reduction of FMN, we now present an assay for electrochemically induced activity switching. We have developed an electrochemical microcell that allows for iterative cycles of reduction/oxidation of FMN in an oxygen free atmosphere and thus for reversible switching of ribozyme activity. The reaction proceeds in droplets of 3 to 10,,L at micro- to nanomolar concentrations of the reaction components. [source] A tumour-associated DEAD-box protein, rck/p54 exhibits RNA unwinding activity toward c-myc RNAs in vitroGENES TO CELLS, Issue 8 2003Yukihiro Akao Background:, The rck/p54 protein of 473 amino acids belongs to the family of DEAD-box/putative RNA helicase proteins. DEAD-box proteins have been implicated in a wide variety of cellular processes ranging from the initiation of protein synthesis and ribosome biosynthesis to premRNA splicing by means of modifying the RNA structure. Our previous data suggested that rck/p54 positively affected the translation initiation of c-myc mRNA. Results:, The data obtained from morphological studies and surface plasmon resonance assays clearly indicated that the protein specifically bound to c-myc RNA transcripts (RNAs) and exhibited RNA unwinding activity toward c-myc RNAs in the presence of ATP in vitro. Experiments using a deletion mutant of rck/p54 retaining only its N-terminal 289 amino acids demonstrated that the deleted C-terminal 184 amino acid domain is involved in the RNA unwinding activity. Conclusion:, These findings strongly suggest that rck/p54 may play an important role in translation initiation by restructuring mRNAs even in the cell and contribute to carcinogenesis. [source] RNA secondary structure 2D graphical representation without degeneracyINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF QUANTUM CHEMISTRY, Issue 8 2006Bo Liao Abstract A two-dimensional graphical representation (2DGRR) of RNA secondary structures using a two Cartesian coordinates system has been derived for mathematical denotation of RNA structure. The 2DGRR resolves structure degeneracy and avoids loss of information and the limitation that different structures correspond to the same curve. The RNA pseudo-knots also can be represented as 2D graphical representations. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2006 [source] Epidemiology of enterovirus types causing neurological disease in Austria 1999,2007: Detection of clusters of echovirus 30 and enterovirus 71 and analysis of prevalent genotypesJOURNAL OF MEDICAL VIROLOGY, Issue 2 2009Birgit Ortner Abstract Between 1999 and 2007 1,388 stool specimens from patients with acute flaccid paralysis or aseptic meningitis were submitted to the Austrian reference laboratory for poliomyelitis. Samples (201) yielded non-poliovirus enterovirus in culture. One hundred eighty-one viruses were available for typing and 78 isolates which remained serologically untyped were further analyzed by CODEHOP-PCR and sequencing of the VP1 gene and the 5,-untranslated region (5,-UTR). Typing revealed an Echovirus 30 outbreak in northwestern Austria in 2000, which was in accordance with the situation in Europe, and no dramatic seasonal changes of Coxsackie viruses were observed. In 2002/2003 a small outbreak of enterovirus 71 (EV71), affected 12 patients in the province of Styria. This virus was identified as genotype C1 and appeared to be genetically distinct from the isolates observed in 2001/2002 in Vienna. In 2004 two unrelated cases occurred in Lower Austria, which were identified as genotype C4, which has been described associated with high mortality most recently in China. In contrast to the situation in Asia the detected EV71 cases were not associated with hand,foot,mouth disease, but with serous meningitis only. This was surprising as a recent publication suggested a reduced neurovirulence of C1 genotype in children in Norway, presumably due to alterations in 5,-UTR and polymerase gene. However, comparing the 5,-UTR of the Austrian isolates and established virulent reference strains to the Norwegian isolate and an attenuated EV71 laboratory strain we did not find an indication that the genotype C1 possesses a RNA structure in its 5,-UTR leading to reduced neurovirulence. J. Med. Virol. 81:317,324, 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Structural insights into the assembly of the human and archaeal signal recognition particlesACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION D, Issue 3 2010Klemens Wild The signal recognition particle (SRP) is a conserved ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complex that co-translationally targets membrane and secretory proteins to membranes. The assembly of the particle depends on the proper folding of the SRP RNA, which in mammalia and archaea involves an induced-fit mechanism within helices 6 and 8 in the S domain of SRP. The two helices are juxtaposed and clamped together upon binding of the SRP19 protein to their apices. In the current assembly paradigm, archaeal SRP19 causes the asymmetric loop of helix 8 to bulge out and expose the binding platform for the key player SRP54. Based on a heterologous archaeal SRP19,human SRP RNA structure, mammalian SRP19 was thought not to be able to induce this change, thus explaining the different requirements of SRP19 for SRP54 recruitment. In contrast, the crystal structures of a crenarchaeal and the all-human SRP19,SRP RNA binary complexes presented here show that the asymmetric loop is bulged out in both binary complexes. Differences in SRP assembly between mammalia and archaea are therefore independent of SRP19 and are based on differences in SRP RNA itself. A new SRP-assembly scheme is presented. [source] An extended Escherichia coli "Selenocysteine Insertion Sequence" (SECIS) as a multifunctional RNA structureBIOFACTORS, Issue 1-4 2001Hanna Engelberg-Kulka Abstract The genetic code, once thought to be rigid, has been found to permit several alternatives in its reading. Interesting alternative relates to the function of the UGA codon. Usually, it acts as a stop codon, but it can also direct the incorporation of the amino acid selenocysteine into a polypeptide. UGA-directed selenocysteine incorporation requires a cis-acting mRNA element called the "selenocysteine insertion sequence" (SECIS) that can form a stem-loop RNA structure. Here we discuss our investigation on the E. coli SECIS. This includes the follows: 1) The nature of the minimal E. coli SECIS. We found that in E. coli only the upper-stem and loop of 17 nucleotides of the SECIS is necessary for selenocysteine incorporation on the condition that it is located in the proper distance from the UGA [34]; 2) The upper stem and loop structure carries a bulged U residue that is required for selenocysteine incorporation [34] because of its interaction with SelB; and 3) We described an extended fdhF SECIS that includes the information for an additional function: The prevention of UGA readthrough under conditions of selenium deficiency [35]. This information is contained in a short mRNA region consisting of a single C residue adjacent to the UGA on its downstream side, and an additional segment consisting of the six nucleotides immediately upstream from it. These two regions act independently and additively and probably through different mechanisms. The single C residue acts as itself; the upstream region acts at the level of the two amino acids, arginine and valine, for which it codes. These two codons at the 5, side of the UGA correspond to the ribosomal E and P sites. Finally, we present a model for the E. coli fdhF SECIS as a multifunctional RNA structure containing three functional elements. Depending on the availability of selenium the SECIS enables one of two alternatives for the translational machinery: Either selenocysteine incorporation into a polypeptide or termination of the polypeptide chain. [source] Crystallization and X-ray diffraction analysis of an `all-locked' nucleic acid duplex derived from a tRNASer microhelixACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION F (ELECTRONIC), Issue 8 2009Katja Behling Modified nucleic acids are of great interest with respect to their nuclease resistance and enhanced thermostability. In therapeutical and diagnostic applications, such molecules can substitute for labile natural nucleic acids that are targeted against particular diseases or applied in gene therapy. The so-called `locked nucleic acids' contain modified sugar moieties such as 2,- O,4,- C -methylene-bridged ,- d -ribofuranose and are known to be very stable nucleic acid derivatives. The structure of locked nucleic acids in single or multiple LNA-substituted natural nucleic acids and in LNA,DNA or LNA,RNA heteroduplexes has been well investigated, but the X-ray structure of an `all-locked' nucleic acid double helix has not been described to date. Here, the crystallization and X-ray diffraction data analysis of an `all-locked' nucleic acid helix, which was designed as an LNA originating from a tRNASer microhelix RNA structure, is presented. The crystals belonged to space group C2, with unit-cell parameters a = 77.91, b = 40.74, c = 30.06,Å, , = 91.02°. A high-resolution and a low-resolution data set were recorded, with the high-resolution data showing diffraction to 1.9,Å resolution. The crystals contained two double helices per asymmetric unit, with a Matthews coefficient of 2.48,Å3,Da,1 and a solvent content of 66.49% for the merged data. [source] Site-Specific Cleavage of the HIV-1 TAR RNA by a Hydroxysalen,Copper(III) ComplexCHEMBIOCHEM, Issue 1 2003Christian Bailly Dr. A copper cutter: XANES and EXAFS measurements show that a para -hydroxysalen compound binds CuIII in solution (see scheme). The complex induces cleavage of the HIV-1 TAR RNA at a specific U40 residue near the trinucleotide bulge and thus provides the first example of a salen-based ribonuclease. The findings may be used for the design of ribonucleases to probe RNA structure. [source] A three-dimensional model of the U1 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particleENTOMOLOGICAL RESEARCH, Issue 2 2010Jason A. SOMARELLI Abstract Most of the pre-mRNAs in the eukaryotic cell are comprised of protein-coding exons and non-protein-coding introns. The introns are removed and the exons are ligated together, or spliced, by a large, macromolecular complex known as the spliceosome. This RNA-protein assembly is made up of five uridine-rich small nuclear RNAs (U1-, U2-, U4-, U5- and U6-snRNA) as well over 300 proteins, which form small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particles (snRNPs). Initial recognition of the 5, exon/intron splice site is mediated by the U1 snRNP, which is composed of the U1 snRNA as well as at least ten proteins. By combining structural informatics tools with the available biochemical and crystallographic data, we attempted to simulate a complete, three dimensional U1 snRNP from the silk moth, Bombyx mori. Comparison of our model with empirically derived crystal structures and electron micrographs pinpoints both the strengths and weaknesses in the in silico determination of macromolecular complexes. One of the most striking differences between our model and experimentally generated structures is in the positioning of the U1 snRNA stem-loops. This highlights the continuing difficulties in generating reliable, complex RNA structures; however, three-dimensional modeling of individual protein subunits by threading provided models of biological significance and the use of both automated and manual docking strategies generated a complex that closely reflects the assembly found in nature. Yet, without utilizing experimentally-derived contacts to select the most likely docking scenario, ab initio docking would fall short of providing a reliable model. Our work shows that the combination of experimental data with structural informatics tools can result in generation of near-native macromolecular complexes. [source] Minimum sequence requirements for selective RNA-ligand binding: A molecular mechanics algorithm using molecular dynamics and free-energy techniquesJOURNAL OF COMPUTATIONAL CHEMISTRY, Issue 14 2006Peter C. Anderson Abstract In vitro evolution techniques allow RNA molecules with unique functions to be developed. However, these techniques do not necessarily identify the simplest RNA structures for performing their functions. Determining the simplest RNA that binds to a particular ligand is currently limited to experimental protocols. Here, we introduce a molecular-mechanics based algorithm employing molecular dynamics simulations and free-energy methods to predict the minimum sequence requirements for selective ligand binding to RNA. The algorithm involves iteratively deleting nucleotides from an experimentally determined structure of an RNA-ligand complex, performing energy minimizations and molecular dynamics on each truncated structure, and assessing which truncations do not prohibit RNA binding to the ligand. The algorithm allows prediction of the effects of sequence modifications on RNA structural stability and ligand-binding energy. We have implemented the algorithm in the AMBER suite of programs, but it could be implemented in any molecular mechanics force field parameterized for nucleic acids. Test cases are presented to show the utility and accuracy of the methodology. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2006 [source] Motifs in nucleic acids: Molecular mechanics restraints for base pairing and base stackingJOURNAL OF COMPUTATIONAL CHEMISTRY, Issue 1 2003Stephen C. Harvey Abstract In building and refining nucleic acid structures, it is often desirable to enforce particular base pairing and/or base stacking interactions. Energy-based modeling programs with classical molecular mechanics force fields do not lend themselves to the easy imposition of penalty terms corresponding to such restraints, because the requirement that two bases lie in or near the same plane (pairing) or that they lie in parallel planes (stacking) cannot be easily expressed in terms of traditional interactions involving two atoms (bonds), three atoms (angles), or four atoms (torsions). Here we derive expressions that define a collection of pseudobonds and pseudoangles through which molecular mechanics restraints for base pairing and stacking can be imposed. We have implemented these restraints into the JUMNA package for modeling DNA and RNA structures. JUMNA scripts can specify base pairing with a variety of standard geometries (Watson,Crick, Hoogsteen, wobble, etc.), or with user-defined geometries; they can also specify stacking arrangements. We have also implemented "soft-core" functions to modify van der Waals and electrostatic interactions to avoid steric conflicts in particularly difficult refinements where two backbones need to pass through one another. Test cases are presented to show the utility of the method. The restraints could be adapted for implementation in other molecular mechanics packages. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 24: 1,9, 2003 [source] Molecular aspects on the interaction of protoberberine, benzophenanthridine, and aristolochia group of alkaloids with nucleic acid structures and biological perspectivesMEDICINAL RESEARCH REVIEWS, Issue 5 2007Motilal Maiti Abstract Alkaloids occupy an important position in chemistry and pharmacology. Among the various alkaloids, berberine and coralyne of the protoberberine group, sanguinarine of the benzophenanthridine group, and aristololactam-,- d -glucoside of the aristolochia group have potential to form molecular complexes with nucleic acid structures and have attracted recent attention for their prospective clinical and pharmacological utility. This review highlights (i) the physicochemical properties of these alkaloids under various environmental conditions, (ii) the structure and functional aspects of various forms of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) (B-form, Z-form, HL -form, protonated form, and triple helical form) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) (A-form, protonated form, and triple helical form), and (iii) the interaction of these alkaloids with various polymorphic DNA and RNA structures reported by several research groups employing various analytical techniques like absorbance, fluorescence, circular dichroism, and NMR spectroscopy; electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, thermal melting, viscosity, and DNase footprinting as well as molecular modeling and thermodynamic studies to provide detailed binding mechanism at the molecular level for structure,activity relationship. Nucleic acids binding properties of these alkaloids are interpreted in relation to their biological activity. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Med Res Rev, 27, No. 5, 649,695, 2007 [source] Biologically Important Reactions Catalyzed by RNA MoleculesTHE CHEMICAL RECORD, Issue 5 2002Yutaka Ikeda Abstract The last few years have seen a considerable increase in our understanding of catalysis by naturally occurring RNA molecules called ribozymes. The biological functions of RNA molecules depend upon their adoption of appropriate three-dimensional structures. The structure of RNA has a very important electrostatic component, which results from the presence of charged phosphodiester bonds. Metal ions are usually required to stabilize the folded structures and/or catalysis. Some ribozymes utilize metal ions as catalysts, whereas others use the ions to maintain appropriate three-dimensional structures. In the latter case, the correct folding of the RNA structures can perturb the pKa values of the nucleotide(s) within a catalytic pocket such that they act as general acid/bases catalysts. © 2002 The Japan Chemical Journal Forum and Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Chem Rec 2: 307,318, 2002: Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com) DOI 10.1002/tcr.10031 [source] Building of RNA and DNA double helices into electron densityACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION D, Issue 6 2008Frantisek Pavelcik A method has been developed that automatically fits double-helical regions into the electron density of nucleic acid structures. Rigid fragments consisting of two Watson,Crick base pairs and three pairs of phosphate groups in the A-type or B-type conformation are positioned into the electron density by phased rotation and translation functions. The position and orientation of the localized double-helical fragments are determined by phased refinement. The method has been tested by building double-helical regions of nine RNA structures of variable crystallographic resolution and polynucleotide length and is available for free use. [source] Binding of Helix-Threading Peptides to E. coli 16S Ribosomal RNA and Inhibition of the S15,16S ComplexCHEMBIOCHEM, Issue 12 2005Barry D. Gooch Abstract Helix-threading peptides (HTPs) constitute a new class of small molecules that bind selectively to duplex RNA structures adjacent to helix defects and project peptide functionality into the dissimilar duplex grooves. To further explore and develop the capabilities of the HTP design for binding RNA selectively, we identified helix 22 of the prokaryotic ribosomal RNA 16S as a target. This helix is a component of the binding site for the ribosomal protein S15. In addition, the S15,16S RNA interaction is important for the ordered assembly of the bacterial ribosome. Here we present the synthesis and characterization of helix-threading peptides that bind selectively to helix 22 of E. coli 16S RNA. These compounds bind helix 22 by threading intercalation placing the N termini in the minor groove and the C termini in the major groove. Binding is dependent on the presence of a highly conserved purine-rich internal loop in the RNA, whereas removal of the loop minimally affects binding of the classical intercalators ethidium bromide and methidiumpropyl,EDTA,Fe (MPE,Fe). Moreover, binding selectivity translates into selective inhibition of formation of the S15,16S complex. [source] | |||||||||||||