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DNA G-quadruplexes are Uniquely Stable in the Presence of Denaturants and Monovalent CationsThe Hofmeister series ranks ions based on their propensity to exert diverse effects on solvents and their associated solutes. On one end are chaotropes which are ions that generally destabilize secondary structure. On the other end, kosmotropes generally stabilize secondary structure. Here, the authors observed that G quadruplexes are comparatively insensitive to the presence of anionic Read more |
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Nonstandard RNA/RNA interactions Likely Enhance Folding and Stability of Segmented RibosomesIt is thought that RNA played a critical role in the origin of life but exactly how RNAs associated to form prebiotically useful RNAs is not clear. The 28S rRNA of some trypanosomatid organisms has been found to be segmented into independent rRNAs of different sizes. The larger rRNA fragments are able to join together by standard base pairing, but the smaller fragments do not appear to have Read more |
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ProteoVision: Web server for advanced visualization of ribosomal proteinsProteoVision is a webserver that allows users to visualize proteins in primary, secondary, and tertiary forms simultaneously. These forms include multiple sequence alignments (MSA), topology diagrams, 3D representations, and amino acid frequency plots. ProteoVision links these visuals by first identifying relevant PDB structures for sequences in a selected or uploaded alignment. Next, Read more |
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Transition Metals Enhance Prebiotic Depsipeptide Oligomerization Reactions Involving HistidineThe authors tested the effect of Zn2+ and other metal ions on polymerization of histidine (His) and glycolic acid into depsipeptides in dry-down reactions. The results here show that interactions of depsipeptides with metal ions could have influenced early chemical evolution of proto-peptides. Data showed that addition of Zn2+ increased the average lengths of His- Read more |
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Water and Life: The Medium is the MessageWater is the medium of life and a key compound produced and/or consumed during organic and inorganic catabolism and anabolism of molecules. Water comprises 99.4% of metabolites in Escherichia coli and serves as a recurring reaction substrate, intermediate, cofactor, and product. The authors calculated a lower limit for extent of participation of water molecules in chemical Read more |
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Amino Acid Specific Nonenzymatic Montmorillonite-Promoted RNA PolymerizationThe authors examined the effects of different amino acids on activated nucleotide, 2-MelmpA, montmorillonite-promoted polymerization at neutral pH. Polymerization in the presence of non-polar and acidic amino acids resulted in longer oligomer formation of up to 10 mers compared to the reference system, which does not contain amino acids, indicating facilitation of polymerization of 2-MelmPA. Read more |
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Expansion Segments in Bacterial and Archaeal 5S Ribosomal RNAs5S rRNA is an essential part of the central protuberance in the large ribosomal subunit. Although its exact function is not known, it is believed to be involved in intraribosomal interactions, which impose evolutionary constraints that make this small RNA one of the most conserved ribosomal components among all three domains of life. Thus, examining structural abnormalities such as expansion Read more |
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Human Ribosomal G-quadruplexes Regulate Heme BioavailabilityHeme is an essential signaling molecule in cells, but it must be tightly regulated due to its potential toxicity. Although the proteins that synthesize and degrade heme have been extensively studied, the regulation of heme bioavailability is currently poorly understood. The authors demonstrate that human rRNA tentacles form G-quadruplexes (G4s) in vivo that regulate cellular heme Read more |
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Rapid deployment of smartphone-based augmented reality tools for field and online education in structural biology3D structure visualization via augmented reality (AR) is practical for education purposes, especially remote instruction. Other molecular visualization software have limitations such as ease of instructor implementation and availability of student hardware. Augment is an AR application that can be easily utilized by instructors and operated by students on their smartphones. US smartphone Read more |
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Further Characterization of the Pseudo-Symmetrical Ribosomal RegionPeptide bond synthesis occurs in the peptidyl transferase center (PTC) of the large ribosomal subunit (LSU). There is an area of twofold pseudo-symmetry (SymR) in and around the PTC comprised of about 178 nucleotides. It has two halves, one half associated with the ribosomal A site, and the other with the P site. SymR is theorized to have emerged by an heterodimerization event in the prebiotic Read more |
