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Long-range base pairing in Drosophila and human mRNA sequences
1Molecular and Cell Biology Program, University of Maryland, College Park, USA.
Molecular Biology and Evolution
|July 10, 1998
Summary
Long-range base pairing between mRNA ends is common in eukaryotes. This study found significant pairing potential in both Drosophila and human messenger RNA (mRNA) sequences, suggesting a conserved regulatory mechanism.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Genomics
- Bioinformatics
Background:
- Messenger RNA (mRNA) structure influences gene expression.
- Long-range RNA-RNA interactions are increasingly recognized as regulatory elements.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the prevalence and characteristics of long-range base pairing between the 5' and 3' ends of eukaryotic mRNA.
- To compare pairing patterns in Drosophila and human mRNA.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 134 Drosophila and 204 human mRNA sequences from GenBank.
- Utilized a modified alignment program to identify and score RNA base pairing between 5' and 3' mRNA regions.
- Compared observed pairing scores against random distributions.
Main Results:
- A significant bias towards higher pairing scores was observed in both Drosophila (61%) and human (64%) mRNA sequences.
- These findings suggest long-range base pairing is a common feature in eukaryotic mRNAs.
- Human mRNA pairings were found to be stronger and more localized near the termini compared to Drosophila.
Conclusions:
- Long-range base pairing between mRNA 5' and 3' ends is a prevalent phenomenon in eukaryotes.
- This structural motif may play a conserved role in post-transcriptional gene regulation.
- Species-specific differences in pairing strength and localization exist between Drosophila and human mRNA.