title: Genetics and biochemistry remain essential in the structural era of the spliceosome.
abstract: The spliceosome is not a single macromolecular machine. Rather it is a collection of dynamic heterogeneous subcomplexes that rapidly interconvert throughout the course of a typical splicing cycle. Because of this, for many years the only high resolution structures of the spliceosome available were of smaller, isolated protein or RNA components. Consequently much of our current understanding of the spliceosome derives from biochemical and genetic techniques. Now with the publication of multiple, high resolution structures of the spliceosome, some question the relevance of traditional biochemical and genetic techniques to the splicing field. We argue such techniques are not only relevant, but vital for an in depth mechanistic understanding of pre-mRNA splicing.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA.
authors.forename: Megan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mayerle
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA. Electronic address: christineguthrie@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Guthrie
mesh_terms: D001671:Biochemistry / Q000379:methods*; D056890:Eukaryota / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007438:Introns / Q000235:genetics; D008967:Molecular Biology / Q000379:methods*; D057054:Molecular Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D012322:RNA Precursors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012326:RNA Splicing; D017381:Spliceosomes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000648:ultrastructure*
chemical_list: D012322:RNA Precursors