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Area of Science:

• Molecular Biology
• Biochemistry
• Genetics

Background:

• Eukaryotic gene expression involves intricate post-transcriptional modifications of pre-mRNA to mature mRNA.
• Key processes include 5'-end capping, splicing, 3'-end cleavage, and polyadenylation, essential for accurate translation.
• The spliceosome and ribosome are crucial ribonucleoprotein machineries managing mRNA processing and protein synthesis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce novel natural products as tools for dissecting eukaryotic post-transcriptional regulation.
• To explore the potential of these compounds as chemical probes for studying mRNA processing and translation.
• To investigate new therapeutic avenues based on targeting these molecular machines.

Main Methods:

• Identification and characterization of natural products targeting spliceosome and ribosome.
• Application of these compounds to chemically disrupt and analyze post-transcriptional events in eukaryotic systems.
• Evaluation of the compounds' efficacy as bioprobes in investigating mRNA regulation and protein synthesis.

Main Results:

• Several natural products capable of chemically targeting spliceosome and ribosome have been identified.
• These compounds enable unprecedented chemical dissection of mRNA processing and translation machinery in eukaryotes.
• Demonstrated potential of these molecules as valuable research tools.

Conclusions:

• Natural products offer a novel chemical approach to investigate complex eukaryotic gene expression pathways.
• These compounds serve as powerful bioprobes for understanding mRNA regulation and protein synthesis.
• The identified molecules hold promise for developing new therapeutic strategies targeting disease-related molecular machinery.