2OIU

The structural basis of ribozyme-catalyzed RNA assembly.

(2007) Science 315: 1549-1553

• PubMed: 17363667 Search on PubMed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1136231
• Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
  2OIU


• PubMed Abstract: 
  

  Life originated, according to the RNA World hypothesis, from self-replicating ribozymes that catalyzed ligation of RNA fragments. We have solved the 2.6 angstrom crystal structure of a ligase ribozyme that catalyzes regiospecific formation of a 5' to 3' phosphodiester bond between the 5'-triphosphate and the 3'-hydroxyl termini of two RNA fragments. Invariant residues form tertiary contacts that stabilize a flexible stem of the ribozyme at the ligation site, where an essential magnesium ion coordinates three phosphates. The structure of the active site permits us to suggest how transition-state stabilization and a general base may catalyze the ligation reaction required for prebiotic RNA assembly.

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Organizational Affiliation: 

Center for the Molecular Biology of RNA and Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Robert L. Sinsheimer Laboratories, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA.