What is it about?
Repeats of same nucleotide (iterons) can bind strongly to various partners, and this can serve to stabilize RNA and ribosome structure (e.g. in microbes living in thermal vents), as well as help selection of RNA and protein partners. Vertebrate ribosomes may use iterons in export of newly made proteins to internal collecting ducts. Human ribosomal 28S RNA has the most iterons across all examined species.
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Why is it important?
Strings of the same nucleotide (homoiterons) can increase lifetime of RNAs, improve stability of association of RNAs and proteins, and help in ordered export of important proteins, such as albumin.
Perspectives
These repeats could be linked to increase in size and complexity of protein-making machinery in vertebrates (mammals in particular) compared to invertebrates or the single-celled organisms, and especially relative to bacteria. Owing to the general habit of looking for (and sometimes even trying to force) molecular similarities across the living species, the above complexity is insufficiently grasped, or studied. Characterization of structure and function of nucleotide repeats should be important in devising anti-bacterial (and possibly also fungicidal and insecticidal) substances.
Prof. Steven L Parker
UTHSC Memphis
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Homoiterons and expansion in ribosomal RNAs, FEBS Open Bio, January 2015, Wiley,
DOI: 10.1016/j.fob.2015.10.005.
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