TY - JOUR
T1 - The intricate world of riboswitches
AU - Coppins, Rebecca L.
AU - Hall, Kathleen B.
AU - Groisman, Eduardo A.
N1 - Funding Information:
Our research on riboswitches is supported, in part, by grants from the National Institutes of Health (KBH and EAG). RLC was a recipient of a WC Keck fellowship and is now the recipient of a National Research Service Award from the National Institutes of Health. EAG is an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
PY - 2007/4
Y1 - 2007/4
N2 - Riboswitches are segments of the 5′-untranslated region of certain bacterial mRNAs that upon recognition of specific ligands modify the expression of a protein(s) encoded in the message. These proteins are responsible for the biosynthesis or transport of ligands, which are typically organic molecules but could also be metal ions. Riboswitch-mediated control of gene expression might be thermodynamic or kinetic, depending on the rate of transcription elongation by RNA polymerase and the structures adopted by the riboswitch RNA. Certain 5′-untranslated regions harbor two riboswitches in tandem that bind to different ligands. Thus, RNA sensors can respond to metabolic changes by modifying gene expression in ways previously thought to be exclusive of proteins.
AB - Riboswitches are segments of the 5′-untranslated region of certain bacterial mRNAs that upon recognition of specific ligands modify the expression of a protein(s) encoded in the message. These proteins are responsible for the biosynthesis or transport of ligands, which are typically organic molecules but could also be metal ions. Riboswitch-mediated control of gene expression might be thermodynamic or kinetic, depending on the rate of transcription elongation by RNA polymerase and the structures adopted by the riboswitch RNA. Certain 5′-untranslated regions harbor two riboswitches in tandem that bind to different ligands. Thus, RNA sensors can respond to metabolic changes by modifying gene expression in ways previously thought to be exclusive of proteins.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=34247111235&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.mib.2007.03.006
DO - 10.1016/j.mib.2007.03.006
M3 - Review article
C2 - 17383225
AN - SCOPUS:34247111235
SN - 1369-5274
VL - 10
SP - 176
EP - 181
JO - Current Opinion in Microbiology
JF - Current Opinion in Microbiology
IS - 2
ER -