Science 312(5775) 906-910 (2006).

[DOI Link]

RNA Recognition and Cleavage by a Splicing Endonuclease

Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Institute of Molecular Biophysics, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida 32306

The RNA splicing endonuclease cleaves two phosphodiester bonds within folded precursor RNAs during intron removal, producing the functional RNAs required for protein synthesis. Here we describe at a resolution of 2.85 angstroms the structure of a splicing endonuclease from Archaeglobus fulgidus bound with a bulge-helix-bulge RNA containing a noncleaved and a cleaved splice site. The endonuclease dimer cooperatively recognized a flipped-out bulge base and stabilizes sharply bent bulge backbones that are poised for an in-line RNA cleavage reaction. Cooperativity arises because an arginine pair from one catalytic domain sandwiches a nucleobase within the bulge cleaved by the other catalytic domain.

PMID: 16690865 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

This publication is one of the several that describes a structure solved either at the Kasha Laboratory, Institute of Molecular Biophysics or in collaboration with the Institute Faculty. The data used for this structure determination came in full or part from the Macromolecular X-Ray Crystallography Facility.