SL1 trans-splicing specified by AU-rich synthetic RNA inserted at the 5' end of Caenorhabditis elegans pre-mRNA.
In Caenorhabditis elegans, pre-mRNAs of many genes are trans-spliced to one of two spliced leaders, SL1 or SL2. Some of those that receive exclusively SL1 have been characterized as having at their 5' ends outrons, AU-rich sequences similar to introns followed by conventional 3' splice sites. Comparison of outrons from many different SL1-specific C. elegans genes has not revealed the presence of any consensus sequence that might encode SL1-specificity. In order to determine what parameters influence the splicing of SL1, we performed in vivo experiments with synthetic splice sites. Synthetic AU-rich RNA, 51 nt or longer, placed upstream of a consensus 3' splice site resulted in efficient trans-splicing. With all sequences tested, this trans-splicing was specifically to SL1. Thus, no information beyond the presence of AU-rich RNA at least as long as the minimum-length C. elegans intron, followed by a 3' splice site, is required to specify trans-splicing or for strict SL1 specificity.
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Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington 47405, USA.
Lea
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Blumenthal
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D000225:Adenine / Q000737:chemistry; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001665:Binding Sites; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000235:genetics*; D017931:DNA Primers; D017238:Genes, Helminth; D015801:Helminth Proteins / Q000737:chemistry; D007438:Introns; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D012322:RNA Precursors / Q000737:chemistry*; D012326:RNA Splicing; D018510:RNA, Helminth / Q000737:chemistry*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000737:chemistry*; D014498:Uracil / Q000737:chemistry
D017931:DNA Primers; D015801:Helminth Proteins; D012322:RNA Precursors; D018510:RNA, Helminth; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D014498:Uracil; D000225:Adenine