Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 18, 2025
12:44
Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assay EMSA for the Study of RNA-Protein Interactions: The IRE/IRP Example
Published on: December 3, 2014
54.1K
Conservation in the Iron Responsive Element Family
1Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA.
Genes
|September 28, 2021
Summary
Iron regulatory elements (IREs) control gene translation via iron regulatory proteins (IRPs). This study discusses essential features for IRE family membership, examining classic and IRE-like sequences.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Gene Regulation
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Iron-responsive elements (IREs) are crucial mRNA structures regulating iron metabolism.
- These elements bind iron regulatory proteins (IRPs) to control protein translation.
- IREs are located in the untranslated regions (UTRs) of iron metabolism genes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To define the essential structural features of IREs for IRP binding.
- To explore the characteristics that determine IRE family membership.
- To analyze the divergence of IRE-like sequences from the canonical IRE model.
Main Methods:
- Structural analysis of IRE sequences.
- Comparative genomics of IRE and IRE-like sequences.
- Bioinformatic analysis of conserved secondary and tertiary structures.
Main Results:
- Identified conserved structural motifs critical for IRP interaction.
- Characterized variations in 83 published IRE-like sequences.
- Highlighted key features distinguishing canonical IREs from IRE-like variants.
Conclusions:
- Essential structural features dictate IRE function and IRP binding.
- IRE-like sequences exhibit significant structural departures from canonical IREs.
- Understanding IRE structure is key to defining IRE family membership and regulatory roles.
Related Concept Videos
02:58Properties of Transition Metals
27.8K
Transition metals are defined as those elements that have partially filled d orbitals. As shown in Figure 1, the d-block elements in groups 3–12 are transition elements. The f-block elements, also called inner transition metals (the lanthanides and actinides), also meet this criterion because the d orbital is partially occupied before the f orbitals.
27.8K
01:49Conserved Binding Sites
4.7K
Many proteins’ biological role depends on their interactions with their ligands, small molecules that bind to specific locations on the protein known as ligand-binding sites. Ligand-binding sites are often conserved among homologous proteins as these sites are critical for protein function.
Binding sites are often located in large pockets, and if their location on a protein’s surface is unknown, it can be predicted using various approaches. The energetic method computationally...
Binding sites are often located in large pockets, and if their location on a protein’s surface is unknown, it can be predicted using various approaches. The energetic method computationally...
4.7K
01:31Ferromagnetism
2.5K
Materials like iron, nickel, and cobalt consist of magnetic domains, within which the magnetic dipoles are arranged parallel to each other. The magnetic dipoles are rigidly aligned in the same direction within a domain by quantum mechanical coupling among the atoms. This coupling is so strong that even thermal agitation at room temperature cannot break it. The result is that each domain has a net dipole moment. However, some materials have weaker coupling, and are ferromagnetic at lower...
2.5K
02:26Conservation of Protein Domains
3.3K
3.3K
00:54Conservation of Energy
10.1K
The terms 'conserved quantity' and 'conservation law' have specific scientific meanings in physics, which differ from the meanings associated with their everyday use. For example, in everyday usage, water could be conserved by not using it, by using less of it, or by re-using it. However, in scientific terms, a conserved quantity of a system stays constant, changes by a definite amount that is transferred to other systems, and is converted into other forms of that...
10.1K
03:02Colors and Magnetism
12.5K
Color in Coordination Complexes
When atoms or molecules absorb light at the proper frequency, their electrons are excited to higher-energy orbitals. For many main group atoms and molecules, the absorbed photons are in the ultraviolet range of the electromagnetic spectrum, which cannot be detected by the human eye. For coordination compounds, the energy difference between the d orbitals often allows photons in the visible range to be absorbed and emitted, which is seen as colors by the human...
When atoms or molecules absorb light at the proper frequency, their electrons are excited to higher-energy orbitals. For many main group atoms and molecules, the absorbed photons are in the ultraviolet range of the electromagnetic spectrum, which cannot be detected by the human eye. For coordination compounds, the energy difference between the d orbitals often allows photons in the visible range to be absorbed and emitted, which is seen as colors by the human...
12.5K