Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Ribonuclease P: unity and diversity in a tRNA processing ribozyme

D N Frank1, N R Pace

  • 1Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley 94720-3102, USA. dfrank@nature.berkeley.edu

Annual Review of Biochemistry
|October 6, 1998
PubMed
Summary

Ribonuclease P (RNase P) is crucial for tRNA maturation across all life domains. Its RNA component is the catalytic center, even in bacteria where it functions independently of protein.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Altered Tonsillar Microbiome in Children with Down Syndrome and Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

Associations between acute gastrointestinal GvHD and the baseline gut microbiota of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients and donors.

Bone marrow transplantation·2017
Same author

Bacteroidales recruit IL-6-producing intraepithelial lymphocytes in the colon to promote barrier integrity.

Mucosal immunology·2017
Same author

Systematic review: microbial dysbiosis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

Alimentary pharmacology & therapeutics·2015
Same author

Gut dendritic cell activation links an altered colonic microbiome to mucosal and systemic T-cell activation in untreated HIV-1 infection.

Mucosal immunology·2015
Same author

An altered intestinal mucosal microbiome in HIV-1 infection is associated with mucosal and systemic immune activation and endotoxemia.

Mucosal immunology·2014

Area of Science:

  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology
  • Enzymology

Background:

  • Ribonuclease P (RNase P) is an essential endoribonuclease responsible for tRNA 5'-end maturation.
  • RNase P is found in all three domains of life (Bacteria, Archaea, Eucarya), as well as in mitochondria and chloroplasts.
  • Enzyme composition varies: cellular and mitochondrial RNase P are ribonucleoproteins, while spinach chloroplast RNase P is protein-only.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the catalytic role of the RNA subunit in Ribonuclease P across different life domains.
  • To compare the structural and functional conservation of RNase P RNA.
  • To understand the evolutionary divergence of RNase P holoenzymes.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative sequence analysis of RNase P RNA across diverse organisms.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Biochemical characterization of RNase P enzyme activity.
  • In vitro catalytic assays of isolated RNase P RNA subunits.

    • Main Results:

    • Bacterial RNase P RNA subunit exhibits catalytic activity in vitro without protein.
    • Homology confirmed between bacterial RNase P RNA and RNAs from archaea, eucarya, and mitochondria.
    • Non-bacterial RNase P RNAs share structural similarities with catalytically active bacterial RNA.

    Conclusions:

    • The RNA component is the conserved catalytic center of Ribonuclease P across all domains of life.
    • Protein subunits contribute to organizational complexity but not the core catalytic function.
    • RNase P RNA represents a primordial catalytic entity in molecular evolution.