Abstract
RNase P, a catalytic ribonucleoprotein (RNP), is best known for its role in precursor tRNA processing. Recent discoveries have revealed that eukaryal RNase P is also required for transcription and processing of select non-coding RNAs, thus enmeshing RNase P in an intricate network of machineries required for gene expression. Moreover, the RNase P RNA seems to have been subject to gene duplication, selection and divergence to generate two new catalytic RNPs, RNase MRP and MRP-TERT, which perform novel functions encompassing cell cycle control and stem cell biology. We present new evidence and perspectives on the functional diversification of the RNase P RNA to highlight it as a paradigm for the evolutionary plasticity that underlies the extant broad repertoire of catalytic and unexpected regulatory roles played by RNA-driven RNPs.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 7885-7894 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Nucleic Acids Research |
| Volume | 38 |
| Issue number | 22 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Dec 2010 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This study was supported by the Israel Science Foundation (673/06 to N.J.); United States–Israel Binational Science Foundation (2005/009 to N.J.); and by grants from the National Science Foundation (MCB 0843543 to V.G.); National Institute of Health (RO1 GM067807 to Mark P. Foster and V.G.; and 1R21 AI082242 to Daniel R. Schoenberg and V.G.). Funding for open access charge: Israel Science Foundation (673/06 to N.J.).