Analysis of RNA motifs

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Neocles B Leontis¹, Eric Westhof

¹Department of Chemistry and Center for Biomolecular Sciences, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio 43403, USA. leontis@bgnet.bgsu.edu

Current Opinion in Structural Biology

|July 2, 2003

Abstract:

RNA motifs are directed and ordered stacked arrays of non-Watson-Crick base pairs forming distinctive foldings of the phosphodiester backbones of the interacting RNA strands. They correspond to the 'loops' - hairpin, internal and junction - that intersperse the Watson-Crick two-dimensional helices as seen in two-dimensional representations of RNA structure. RNA motifs mediate the specific interactions that induce the compact folding of complex RNAs. RNA motifs also constitute specific protein or ligand binding sites. A given motif is characterized by all the sequences that fold into essentially identical three-dimensional structures with the same ordered array of isosteric non-Watson-Crick base pairs. It is therefore crucial, when analyzing a three-dimensional RNA structure in order to identify and compare motifs, to first classify its non-Watson-Crick base pairs geometrically.

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Overview
The basic structure of RNA consists of a five-carbon sugar and one of four nitrogenous bases. Although most RNA is single-stranded, it can form complex secondary and tertiary structures. Such structures play essential roles in the regulation of transcription and translation.
Different Types of RNA Have the Same Basic Structure
There are three main types of ribonucleic acid (RNA): messenger RNA (mRNA), transfer RNA (tRNA), and ribosomal RNA (rRNA). All three RNA types consist of a...

RNA Structure

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Overview
The basic structure of RNA consists of a five-carbon sugar and one of four nitrogenous bases. Although most RNA is single-stranded, it can form complex secondary and tertiary structures. Such structures play essential roles in the regulation of transcription and translation.
Different Types of RNA Have the Same Basic Structure
There are three main types of ribonucleic acid (RNA): messenger RNA (mRNA), transfer RNA (tRNA), and ribosomal RNA (rRNA). All three RNA types consist of a...

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Ribosome synthesis is a highly complex and coordinated process involving more than 200 assembly factors. The synthesis and processing of ribosomal components occurs not only in the nucleolus but also in the nucleoplasm and the cytoplasm of eukaryotic cells.
Ribosome biogenesis begins with the synthesis of 5S and 45S pre-rRNAs by distinct RNA polymerases. The primary transcripts are extensively processed and modified before they are bound and folded by ribosomal proteins and assembly factors,...

RNA Structure

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The basic structure of RNA consists of a string of ribonucleotides attached by phosphodiester bonds. Although most RNA is single-stranded, it can form complex secondary and tertiary structures. Such structures play essential roles in the regulation of transcription and translation.
Different Types of RNA Have the Same Basic Structure
There are three main types of ribonucleic acid (RNA) involved in protein synthesis: messenger RNA (mRNA), transfer RNA (tRNA), and ribosomal RNA (rRNA). All three...

Ribosomal RNA Synthesis

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Ribosome synthesis is a highly complex and coordinated process involving more than 200 assembly factors. The synthesis and processing of ribosomal components occurs not only in the nucleolus but also in the nucleoplasm and the cytoplasm of eukaryotic cells.
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