Torsional restraint: a new twist on frameshifting pseudoknots | Zendy

Ewan P. Plant | Zendy

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Torsional restraint: a new twist on frameshifting pseudoknots

Author(s) -

Ewan P. Plant

Publication year - 2005

Publication title -

nucleic acids research

Language(s) - English

Resource type - Journals

SCImago Journal Rank - 9.008

H-Index - 537

eISSN - 1362-4954

pISSN - 0305-1048

DOI - 10.1093/nar/gki329

Subject(s) - translational frameshift , pseudoknot , ribosome , biology , messenger rna , translation (biology) , ribosomal rna , twist , genetics , microbiology and biotechnology , rna , gene , geometry , mathematics

mRNA pseudoknots have a stimulatory function in programmed -1 ribosomal frameshifting (-1 PRF). Though we previously presented a model for how mRNA pseudoknots might activate the mechanism for -1 PRF, it did not address the question of the role that they may play in positioning the mRNA relative to the ribosome in this process [E. P. Plant, K. L. M. Jacobs, J. W. Harger, A. Meskauskas, J. L. Jacobs, J. L. Baxter, A. N. Petrov and J. D. Dinman (2003) RNA, 9, 168-174]. A separate 'torsional restraint' model suggests that mRNA pseudoknots act to increase the fraction of ribosomes directed to pause with the upstream heptameric slippery site positioned at the ribosome's A- and P-decoding sites [J. D. Dinman (1995) Yeast, 11, 1115-1127]. Here, experiments using a series of 'pseudo-pseudoknots' having different degrees of rotational freedom were used to test this model. The results of this study support the mechanistic hypothesis that -1 ribosomal frameshifting is enhanced by torsional resistance of the mRNA pseudoknot.

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