Pre-mRNA splicing involves recognition of a consensus sequence at the 5' splice site (SS). However, only some of the many potential sites that conform to the consensus are true ones, whereas the majority remain silent and are not normally used for splicing. We noticed that in most cases the utilization of such a latent intronic 5' SS for splicing would introduce an in-frame stop codon into the resultant mRNA. This finding suggested a link between SS selection and maintenance of an ORF within the mRNA. Here we tested this idea by analyzing the splicing of pre-mRNAs in which in-frame stop codons upstream of a latent 5' SS were mutated. We found that splicing with the latent site is indeed activated by such mutations. Our findings predict the existence of a checking mechanism, as a component of the nuclear pre-mRNA splicing machine, to ensure the maintenance of an ORF. This notion is highly important for accurate gene expression, as perturbations that would lead to splicing at these latent sites are expected to introduce in-frame stop codons into the majority of mRNAs.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC122760 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.082095299 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Nutrient control of splice site selection contributes to methionine addiction of cancer.
Mol Metab
January 2025
Department of Biological Chemistry, University of California, Irvine School of Medicine. Electronic address:
Objectives: Many cancer cells depend on exogenous methionine for proliferation, whereas non-tumorigenic cells can divide in media supplemented with the metabolic precursor homocysteine. This phenomenon is known as methionine dependence of cancer or methionine addiction. The underlying mechanisms driving this cancer-specific metabolic addiction are poorly understood.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCircular RNA Formation and Degradation Are Not Directed by Universal Pathways.
Int J Mol Sci
January 2025
Department of Rare Diseases, Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences, Noskowskiego 12/14, 61-704 Poznan, Poland.
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a class of unique transcripts characterized by a covalently closed loop structure, which differentiates them from conventional linear RNAs. The formation of circRNAs occurs co-transcriptionally and post-transcriptionally through a distinct type of splicing known as back-splicing, which involves the formation of a head-to-tail splice junction between a 5' splice donor and an upstream 3' splice acceptor. This process, along with exon skipping, intron retention, cryptic splice site utilization, and lariat-driven intron processing, results in the generation of three main types of circRNAs (exonic, intronic, and exonic-intronic) and their isoforms.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFADAR Therapeutics as a New Tool for Personalized Medicine.
Genes (Basel)
January 2025
Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, 25123 Brescia, Italy.
In the field of RNA therapy, innovative approaches based on adenosine deaminases acting on RNA (ADAR)-mediated site-directed RNA editing (SDRE) have been established, providing an exciting opportunity for RNA therapeutics. ADAR1 and ADAR2 enzymes are accountable for the predominant form of RNA editing in humans, which involves the hydrolytic deamination of adenosine (A) to inosine (I). This inosine is subsequently interpreted as guanosine (G) by the translational and splicing machinery because of their structural similarity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNovel Variants Lead to Aberrant Splicing in a Patient with Chediak-Higashi Syndrome.
Genes (Basel)
December 2024
Dmitry Rogachev National Medical Center of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Immunology, 117198 Moscow, Russia.
The advent of next-generation sequencing (NGS) has revolutionized the analysis of genetic data, enabling rapid identification of pathogenic variants in patients with inborn errors of immunity (IEI). Sometimes, the use of NGS-based technologies is associated with challenges in the evaluation of the clinical significance of novel genetic variants. In silico prediction tools, such as SpliceAI neural network, are often used as a first-tier approach for the primary examination of genetic variants of uncertain clinical significance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMET Activation in Lung Cancer and Response to Targeted Therapies.
Cancers (Basel)
January 2025
Integrative Oncology, BC Cancer Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1L3, Canada.
The hepatocyte growth factor receptor (MET) is a receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) that mediates the activity of a variety of downstream pathways upon its activation. These pathways regulate various physiological processes within the cell, including growth, survival, proliferation, and motility. Under normal physiological conditions, this allows MET to regulate various development and regenerative processes; however, mutations resulting in aberrant MET activity and the consequent dysregulation of downstream signaling can contribute to cellular pathophysiology.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!