A nucleic acid sequence is a succession of bases within the nucleotides forming alleles within a DNA or RNA (GACU) molecule. This succession is denoted by a series of a set of five different letters that indicate the order of the nucleotides. By convention, sequences are usually presented from the 5' end to the 3' end. For DNA, with its double helix, there are two possible directions for the notated sequence; of these two, the sense strand is used. Because nucleic acids are normally linear (unbranched) polymers, specifying the sequence is equivalent to defining the covalent structure of the entire molecule. For this reason, the nucleic acid sequence is also termed the primary structure.
In a chain-like biological molecule, such as a protein or nucleic acid, a structural motif is a common three-dimensional structure that appears in a variety of different, evolutionarily unrelated molecules. A structural motif does not have to be associated with a sequence motif; it can be represented by different and completely unrelated sequences in different proteins or RNA.
An aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase, also called tRNA-ligase, is an enzyme that attaches the appropriate amino acid onto its corresponding tRNA. It does so by catalyzing the transesterification of a specific cognate amino acid or its precursor to one of all its compatible cognate tRNAs to form an aminoacyl-tRNA. In humans, the 20 different types of aa-tRNA are made by the 20 different aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases, one for each amino acid of the genetic code.
Biomolecular structure is the intricate folded, three-dimensional shape that is formed by a molecule of protein, DNA, or RNA, and that is important to its function. The structure of these molecules may be considered at any of several length scales ranging from the level of individual atoms to the relationships among entire protein subunits. This useful distinction among scales is often expressed as a decomposition of molecular structure into four levels: primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary. The scaffold for this multiscale organization of the molecule arises at the secondary level, where the fundamental structural elements are the molecule's various hydrogen bonds. This leads to several recognizable domains of protein structure and nucleic acid structure, including such secondary-structure features as alpha helixes and beta sheets for proteins, and hairpin loops, bulges, and internal loops for nucleic acids. The terms primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary structure were introduced by Kaj Ulrik Linderstrøm-Lang in his 1951 Lane Medical Lectures at Stanford University.
RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) or RNA replicase is an enzyme that catalyzes the replication of RNA from an RNA template. Specifically, it catalyzes synthesis of the RNA strand complementary to a given RNA template. This is in contrast to typical DNA-dependent RNA polymerases, which all organisms use to catalyze the transcription of RNA from a DNA template.
In molecular biology, LSm proteins are a family of RNA-binding proteins found in virtually every cellular organism. LSm is a contraction of 'like Sm', because the first identified members of the LSm protein family were the Sm proteins. LSm proteins are defined by a characteristic three-dimensional structure and their assembly into rings of six or seven individual LSm protein molecules, and play a large number of various roles in mRNA processing and regulation.
The acetolactate synthase (ALS) enzyme is a protein found in plants and micro-organisms. ALS catalyzes the first step in the synthesis of the branched-chain amino acids.
Eukaryotic translation termination factor1 (eRF1), also referred to as TB3-1 or SUP45L1, is a protein that is encoded by the ERF1 gene. In Eukaryotes, eRF1 is an essential protein involved in stop codon recognition in translation, termination of translation, and nonsense mediated mRNA decay via the SURF complex.
In molecular biology, U3 snoRNA is a non-coding RNA found predominantly in the nucleolus. U3 has C/D box motifs that technically make it a member of the box C/D class of snoRNAs; however, unlike other C/D box snoRNAs, it has not been shown to direct 2'-O-methylation of other RNAs. Rather, U3 is thought to guide site-specific cleavage of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) during pre-rRNA processing.
The gcvB RNA gene encodes a small non-coding RNA involved in the regulation of a number of amino acid transport systems as well as amino acid biosynthetic genes. The GcvB gene is found in enteric bacteria such as Escherichia coli. GcvB regulates genes by acting as an antisense binding partner of the mRNAs for each regulated gene. This binding is dependent on binding to a protein called Hfq. Transcription of the GcvB RNA is activated by the adjacent GcvA gene and repressed by the GcvR gene. A deletion of GcvB RNA from Y. pestis changed colony shape as well as reducing growth. It has been shown by gene deletion that GcvB is a regulator of acid resistance in E. coli. GcvB enhances the ability of the bacterium to survive low pH by upregulating the levels of the alternate sigma factor RpoS. A polymeric form of GcvB has recently been identified. Interaction of GcvB with small RNA SroC triggers the degradation of GcvB by RNase E, lifting the GcvB-mediated mRNA repression of its target genes.
DEAD box proteins are involved in an assortment of metabolic processes that typically involve RNAs, but in some cases also other nucleic acids. They are highly conserved in nine motifs and can be found in most prokaryotes and eukaryotes, but not all. Many organisms, including humans, contain DEAD-box (SF2) helicases, which are involved in RNA metabolism.
The sucA RNA motif is a conserved RNA structure found in bacteria of the order Burkholderiales. RNAs within this motif are always found in the presumed 5' UTR of sucA genes. sucA encodes a subunit of an enzyme that participates in the citric acid cycle by synthesizing succinyl-CoA from 2-oxoglutarate. A part of the conserved structure overlaps predicted Shine-Dalgarno sequences of the downstream sucA genes. Because of the RNA motif's consistent gene association and a possible mechanism for sequestering the ribosome binding site, it was proposed that the sucA RNA motif corresponds to a cis-regulatory element. Its relatively complex secondary structure could indicate that it is a riboswitch. However, the function of this RNA motif remains unknown.
The anti-hemB RNA motif is a conserved RNA structure that was found in all known bacteria in the genus Burkholderia, and in a variety of other betaproteobacteria. The anti-hemB RNA motif consists primarily of two stem-loops, followed by a predicted rho-independent transcription termination stem-loop. As anti-hemB RNAs are generally not located in a 5' UTR, the RNAs are presumed to be non-coding RNAs. The terminator stem-loop implies that anti-hemB RNAs are transcribed as independent molecules.
Nucleic acid tertiary structure is the three-dimensional shape of a nucleic acid polymer. RNA and DNA molecules are capable of diverse functions ranging from molecular recognition to catalysis. Such functions require a precise three-dimensional structure. While such structures are diverse and seemingly complex, they are composed of recurring, easily recognizable tertiary structural motifs that serve as molecular building blocks. Some of the most common motifs for RNA and DNA tertiary structure are described below, but this information is based on a limited number of solved structures. Many more tertiary structural motifs will be revealed as new RNA and DNA molecules are structurally characterized.
Nucleic acidquaternary structure refers to the interactions between separate nucleic acid molecules, or between nucleic acid molecules and proteins. The concept is analogous to protein quaternary structure, but as the analogy is not perfect, the term is used to refer to a number of different concepts in nucleic acids and is less commonly encountered. Similarly other biomolecules such as proteins, nucleic acids have four levels of structural arrangement: primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary structure. Primary structure is the linear sequence of nucleotides, secondary structure involves small local folding motifs, and tertiary structure is the 3D folded shape of nucleic acid molecule. In general, quaternary structure refers to 3D interactions between multiple subunits. In the case of nucleic acids, quaternary structure refers to interactions between multiple nucleic acid molecules or between nucleic acids and proteins. Nucleic acid quaternary structure is important for understanding DNA, RNA, and gene expression because quaternary structure can impact function. For example, when DNA is packed into heterochromatin, therefore exhibiting a type of quaternary structure, gene transcription will be inhibited.
The ilvH RNA motif is a conserved RNA structure that was discovered by bioinformatics. ilvH motifs are found in Betaproteobacteria.
IS605-orfB RNA motifs refer to conserved RNA or DNA structures that were discovered by bioinformatics. Although such motifs were published as a RNA candidates, there is some reason to suspect that they might function as a single-stranded DNA. In terms of secondary structure, RNA and DNA are difficult to distinguish when only sequence information is available. If the motifs function as RNA, they likely are small RNAs, that are independently transcribed.
The porB RNA motif is a conserved RNA structure that was discovered by bioinformatics. porB motif RNAs are found in Neisseria.
The Thermales-rpoB RNA motif is a conserved RNA structure that was discovered by bioinformatics. Thermales-rpoB motifs are found in Thermales.
