RNA-protein complexes.
RNA-binding proteins are an extremely diverse group of proteins, reflecting the diverse functional requirements of cellular RNAs. Whereas the number of structures of RNA-binding proteins or modules is increasing at a reasonable rate, that of protein-RNA complexes increments by only a few each year. The recently determined structure of a complex from the U2 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particle shows the subtleties of RNA stem-loop recognition by ribonucleoprotein modules. A second structure provides the first direct information on double-stranded RNA recognition by the double-stranded RNA-binding module that occurs in a variety of functionally distinct proteins. Another two new complexes concern proteins interacting with tRNA. The first is methionyl-tRNAf(Met) transformylase, which has to compete with elongation factor Tu for charged initiator tRNAMet and does so by recognising specific features of the acceptor stem of tRNAf(Met). The second is prolyl-tRNA synthetase, complexed with its cognate tRNA, that has to specifically recognise the two guanines common to all tRNA anticodons specific for proline.
Cusack
S
S
EMBL Grenoble Outstation, c/o ILL, Grenoble, France. cusack@embl-grenoble.fr
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000604:Amino Acyl-tRNA Synthetases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001665:Binding Sites; D019877:Hydroxymethyl and Formyl Transferases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D011487:Protein Conformation; D012313:RNA / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012330:RNA, Double-Stranded / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D012342:RNA, Small Nuclear / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D012361:RNA, Transfer, Pro / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D017381:Spliceosomes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism
D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D012330:RNA, Double-Stranded; D012342:RNA, Small Nuclear; D012361:RNA, Transfer, Pro; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins; D012313:RNA; D019877:Hydroxymethyl and Formyl Transferases; C021561:methionyl-tRNA formyltransferase; D000604:Amino Acyl-tRNA Synthetases; C100134:prolyl T RNA synthetase