A cell-based ribozyme reporter system employing a chromosomally-integrated 5′ exonuclease gene

Abstract Background Bioinformatic genome surveys indicate that self-cleaving ribonucleic acids (ribozymes) appear to be widespread among all domains of life, although the functions of only a small number have been validated by biochemical methods. Alternatively, cell-based reporter gene assays can be used to validate ribozyme function. However, reporter activity can be confounded by phenomena unrelated to ribozyme-mediated cleavage of RNA. Results We established a ribozyme reporter system in Escherichia coli in which a significant reduction of reporter activity is manifest when an active ribozyme sequence is fused to the reporter gene and the expression of a foreign Bacillus subtilis RNaseJ1 5′ exonuclease is induced from a chromosomally-integrated gene in the same cell. Conclusions The reporter system could be useful for validating ribozyme function in candidate sequences identified from bioinformatics.

Abstract licence: CC BY-NC-ND

1. 15.

   Inducible Knockdown of Plasmodium Gene Expression Using the glmS Ribozyme · 2013

2. 19.

   Identification of Hammerhead Ribozymes in All Domains of Life Reveals Novel Structural Variations · 2011

38 more references, whose wording the paper’s licence keeps private.

A person counts once a day per paper. We keep no cookie and no address: a reader is a hash that changes every day. Any month under five reads shows no number.