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Updated: Jul 2, 2026

Large-scale Production of Recombinant RNAs on a Circular Scaffold Using a Viroid-derived System in Escherichia coli
Published on: November 30, 2018
Viroids: molecular implements for dissecting RNA trafficking in plants
Francesco Di Serio1, Ricardo Flores
1Istituto di Virologia Vegetale (CNR), Unità Organizzativa di Bari, Via Amendola 165/A, Bari, Italy. f.diserio@ba.ivv.cnr.it
Abstract:
Viroids are infectious agents isolated so far only from plants. They are small, non-protein-coding RNAs that must interact directly with and usurp components of their host machinery for replication, systemic spread and, eventually, expression of pathogenic effects. Viroids, therefore, are invading RNAs that may be instrumental for getting deeper insights into the structural-funtional relationships of host RNAs. Specifically, here we discuss past and potential future contributions of viroids to RNA trafficking in plants, including the possible involvement of RNA silencing.
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