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Hairpin ribozyme catalysis: A surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy study
Author(s) -
Percot Aline,
Lecomte Sophie,
Vergne Jacques,
Maurel MarieChristine
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
biopolymers
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.556
H-Index - 125
eISSN - 1097-0282
pISSN - 0006-3525
DOI - 10.1002/bip.21143
Subject(s) - ribozyme , biomolecule , chemistry , rna , ligase ribozyme , raman spectroscopy , surface enhanced raman spectroscopy , nanotechnology , combinatorial chemistry , hairpin ribozyme , cleavage (geology) , biophysics , biochemistry , raman scattering , biology , materials science , physics , paleontology , fracture (geology) , optics , gene
The existence of an “RNA world” as an early step in the history of life increases the interest for the characterization of these biomolecules. The hairpin ribozyme studied here is a self‐cleaving/ligating motif found in the minus strand of the satellite RNA associated with Tobacco ringspot virus. Surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a powerful tool to study trace amounts of RNA. In controlled conditions, a SERS signal is proportional to the amount of free residues adsorbed on the metal surface. On RNA cleavage, residues are unpaired and free to interact with metal. SERS procedures are used to monitor and quantify the catalysis of ribozyme cleavage at biological concentrations in real time; thus, they propose an interesting alternative to electrophoretic methods. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers 91: 384–390, 2009. This article was originally published online as an accepted preprint. The “Published Online” date corresponds to the preprint version. You can request a copy of the preprint by emailing the Biopolymers editorial office at biopolymers@wiley.com