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Ribozymes

Ribozymes

The term ribozyme is used for RNA that can act as an enzyme. Ribozymes are mainly found in selected viruses, bacteria, plant organelles, and lower eukaryotes. Ribozymes were first discovered in 1982 when Tom Cech’s laboratory observed Group I introns acting as enzymes. This was shortly followed by the discovery of another ribozyme, Ribonulcease P, by Sid Altman’s laboratory. Both Cech and Altman received the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1989 for their work on ribozymes.
Ribozymes can...

Ribozymes

Ribozymes

Ribosomal RNA Synthesis

Ribosomal RNA Synthesis

Ribosomal RNA Synthesis

Ribosomal RNA Synthesis

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,...

Bacterial RNA Polymerase

Bacterial RNA Polymerase

Unlike eukaryotes, bacteria use a single RNA Polymerase (RNAP) to transcribe all genes. The different subunits of bacterial RNAPhave distinct functions. The multisubunit structure of the bacterial RNAP helps the enzyme to maintain catalytic function, facilitate assembly, interact with DNA and RNA, and self-regulate its activity.
In most genes, the transcription site is a single base present upstream of the coding sequence. Though RNAP is a catalytically efficient enzyme, it does not recognize...

Bacterial RNA Polymerase

Bacterial RNA Polymerase

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 30, 2025

Chemical Triphosphorylation of Oligonucleotides

Chemical Triphosphorylation of Oligonucleotides

Published on: June 2, 2022

Piece by piece: Building a ribozyme.

Michael W Gray¹, Venkat Gopalan²

¹Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Centre for Comparative Genomics and Evolutionary Bioinformatics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 4R2, Canada.

The Journal of Biological Chemistry

|January 19, 2020

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

The ribosome and RNase P, ancient RNA enzymes, may have evolved from smaller RNA fragments. This pathway could explain the origin of other non-coding RNAs.

Keywords:

enzyme catalysis evolution ribonuclease P (RNase P)ribonucleoprotein complex ribosome ribozyme (catalytic RNA) (RNA enzyme)

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Area of Science:

Molecular Biology
Evolutionary Biology
Biochemistry

Background:

The ribosome and RNase P are ancient ribonucleoprotein complexes essential for life.
Their catalytic activity relies on their large RNA components, acting as ribozymes.
Both are conserved across all domains of life, originating from the last universal common ancestor.

Purpose of the Study:

To explore the hypothesis that large ribozymes like ribosome and RNase P evolved from smaller RNA fragments.
To propose a potential evolutionary pathway for these ribozymes.
To suggest this pathway's relevance for the evolution of other non-coding RNAs.

Main Methods:

Comparative analysis of ribozyme structures and sequences.
Bioinformatic approaches to infer evolutionary relationships.
Phylogenetic reconstruction of early RNA-based systems.

Main Results:

Evidence suggests that the large catalytic RNAs of ribosome and RNase P may have assembled from smaller precursor RNAs.
A stepwise evolutionary model is proposed, involving increasing complexity and size of RNA molecules.
This model provides a framework for understanding the emergence of large functional RNAs.

Conclusions:

The evolution of complex ribozymes likely involved a gradual process of fragment assembly.
The proposed pathway offers insights into the early evolution of RNA catalysis and non-coding RNAs.
Understanding this evolutionary trajectory is crucial for deciphering the origins of cellular life.