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Processing of the large rRNA precursor: two proposed categories of RNA-RNA interactions in eukaryotes

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Summary

The 5.8S RNA gene of eukaryotes is separated from the 26–28S rRNA gene by the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS 2). A compilation of known ITS 2 sequences is presented here. Four characteristic features of the ITS 2 primary structure are shared by all vertebrates. In contrast, lower eukaryotes lack most of these features, suggesting that the excision of the ITS 2 transcript during processing may differ between vertebrates and lower eukaryotes. Since the transcripts of rRNA ITS 2 and mRNA introns share some similarity, analogies have been made between the mechanisms of their removal during RNA maturation. A model is proposed for hydrogen-bonding of U3 snRNA with the 5′ end of the vertebrate ITS 2 transcript. This U3 snRNA-ITS 2 RNA interaction does not appear to be used in ITS 2 processing in lower eukaryotes. Instead, in lower eukaryotes a region within the ITS 2 it itself has the potential to hydrogen-bond to the 5′ end of the ITS 2 transcript.

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  1. Brian W. Tague

    Present address: Department of Biology, B-022, University of California, San Diego, 92093, La Jolla, California, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Biology and Medicine, Brown University, 02912, Providence, Rhode Island, USA

    Brian W. Tague & Susan A. Gerbi

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  1. Brian W. Tague
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  2. Susan A. Gerbi
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Tague, B.W., Gerbi, S.A. Processing of the large rRNA precursor: two proposed categories of RNA-RNA interactions in eukaryotes. J Mol Evol 20, 362–367 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02104742

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