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Hammerhead Ribozymes Against Virus and Viroid RNAs

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From Nucleic Acids Sequences to Molecular Medicine

Part of the book series: RNA Technologies ((RNATECHN))

Abstract

The hammerhead ribozyme, a small catalytic motif that promotes self-cleavage of the RNAs in which it is found naturally embedded, can be manipulated to recognize and cleave specifically in trans other RNAs in the presence of Mg2+. To be really effective, hammerheads need to operate at the low concentration of Mg2+ existing in vivo. Evidence has been gathered along the last years showing that tertiary stabilizing motifs (TSMs), particularly interactions between peripheral loops, are critical for the catalytic activity of hammerheads at physiological levels of Mg2+. These TSMs, in two alternative formats, have been incorporated into a new generation of more efficient trans-cleaving hammerheads, some of which are active in vitro and in planta when targeted against the highly structured RNA of a viroid (a small plant pathogen). This strategy has potential to confer protection against other RNA replicons, like RNA viruses infecting plants and animals.

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Acknowledgments

Our research is currently being supported by grants BFU2008-03154 and BFU2011-28443 from the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación of Spain and by the Generalitat Valenciana (ACOMP/2010/278).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Plantas (UPV-CSIC), Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Avenida de los Naranjos, Valencia, 46022, Spain

    Alberto Carbonell, Ricardo Flores & Selma Gago

Authors
  1. Alberto Carbonell
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  2. Ricardo Flores
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  3. Selma Gago
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Ricardo Flores or Selma Gago .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Chemistry/Biochemistry, Free University Berlin, Thielallee 63, Berlin, 14195, Berlin, Germany

    Volker A. Erdmann

  2. Inst. Bioorganic Chemistry, PAN Poznan, ul. Z. Noskowskiego 12/14, Poznan, 61-704, Poland

    Jan Barciszewski

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Carbonell, A., Flores, R., Gago, S. (2012). Hammerhead Ribozymes Against Virus and Viroid RNAs. In: Erdmann, V., Barciszewski, J. (eds) From Nucleic Acids Sequences to Molecular Medicine. RNA Technologies. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27426-8_16

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