The design and catalytic properties of a simplified ribonuclease P RNA.
Ribonuclease P (RNase P) RNA is the catalytic moiety of the ribonucleoprotein enzyme that removes precursor sequences from the 5' ends of pre-transfer RNAs in eubacteria. Phylogenetic variation according to recently proposed secondary structure models was used to identify structural elements of the RNase P RNA that are dispensable for catalysis. A simplified RNase P RNA that consists only of evolutionarily conserved features was designed, synthesized, and characterized. Although the simplified RNA (Min 1 RNA) is only 263 nucleotides in length, in contrast to the 354 to 417 nucleotides of naturally occurring RNase P RNAs, its specificity of pre-tRNA cleavage is identical to that of the native enzymes. Moreover, the catalytic efficiencies of the Min 1 RNA and the native RNA enzymes are similar. These results focus the search for the catalytic elements of RNase P RNAs to their conserved structure.
Waugh
D S
DS
Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington 47405.
Green
C J
CJ
Pace
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NR
D001410:Bacillus megaterium / Q000201:enzymology; D001483:Base Sequence; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002384:Catalysis; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D012321:DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases / Q000235:genetics; D004722:Endoribonucleases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000201:enzymology; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D010957:Plasmids; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D012329:RNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D043262:Ribonuclease P; D013045:Species Specificity; D013604:T-Phages / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D013696:Temperature; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D012329:RNA, Bacterial; D012321:DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases; D004722:Endoribonucleases; D043262:Ribonuclease P; C470865:ribonuclease P, E coli