Solution structure of a substrate for the archaeal pre-tRNA splicing endonucleases: the bulge-helix-bulge motif

The structure of the bulge-helix-bulge motif that constitutes the intron/exon splice site in H. volcanii pre-tRNATrp has been determined by NMR spectroscopy. The conformations of the two 3 nt bulges, where the pre-tRNA is cleaved, are stabilized by stacking interactions between bulge nucleotides and bases in the adjacent Watson-Crick helices and by a network of backbone hydrogen bonds. Both bulges are presented on the same minor groove face of the central 4 bp helix, and the overall structure has approximate two-fold symmetry, which makes it well-suited for attack by archaeal splicing endonucleases, which are symmetric dimers.