Towards Higher Complexity in the RNA World: Hairpin Ribozyme Supported RNA Recombination

Montmorillonite protection of an UV-irradiated hairpin ribozyme: evolution of the RNA world in a mineral environment

BMC Evolutionary Biology ◽

10.1186/1471-2148-7-s2-s2 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 7 (Suppl 2) ◽

pp. S2 ◽

Cited By ~ 47

Author(s):

Elisa Biondi ◽

Sergio Branciamore ◽

Marie-Christine Maurel ◽

Enzo Gallori

Keyword(s):

Rna World ◽

Hairpin Ribozyme

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Engineering of hairpin ribozyme variants for RNA recombination and splicing

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1111/nyas.14052 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 1447 (1) ◽

pp. 135-143 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Robert Hieronymus ◽

Sabine Müller

Keyword(s):

Hairpin Ribozyme ◽

Rna Recombination

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RNA Back and Forth: Looking Through Ribozyme and Viroid Motifs

10.20944/preprints201811.0564.v2 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Marie-Christine Maurel ◽

Fabrice Leclerc ◽

Jacques Vergne ◽

Giuseppe Zaccai

Keyword(s):

Rna World ◽

Hammerhead Ribozyme ◽

Intramolecular Interactions ◽

Modern World ◽

Hairpin Ribozyme ◽

Living Fossils ◽

Evolution Of Life ◽

Catalytically Active ◽

World Hypothesis ◽

Rna World Hypothesis

Current cellular facts allow us to follow the link from chemical to biochemical metabolites, from the ancient to the modern world. In this context, the "RNA world" hypothesis proposes that early in the evolution of life, the ribozyme was responsible for the storage and transfer of genetic information and for the catalysis of biochemical reactions. Accordingly, the hammerhead ribozyme (HHR) and the hairpin ribozyme, belong to a family of endonucleolytic RNAs performing self-cleavage that might occur during replication. Furthermore, regarding the ultraconserved occurrence of HHR in several genomes of modern organisms (from mammals to small parasites and elsewhere), these small ribozymes have been regarded as living fossils of a primitive RNA world. They fold into 3D structures that generally require long-range intramolecular interactions to adopt the catalytically active conformation under specific physicochemical conditions. By studying viroids as plausible remains of ancient RNA, we recently demonstrated that they replicate in non-specific hosts, emphasizing their adaptability to different environments, which enhanced their survival probability over the ages. All these results exemplify ubiquitously features of life. Those are the versatility and efficiency of small RNAs, viroids and ribozymes, as well as their diversity and adaptability to various extreme conditions. All these traits must have originated in early life to generate novel RNA populations.

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RNA Back and Forth: Looking Through Ribozyme and Viroid Motifs

10.20944/preprints201811.0564.v1 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Marie-Christine Maurel ◽

Fabrice Leclerc ◽

Jacques Vergne ◽

Giuseppe Zaccai

Keyword(s):

Rna World ◽

Hammerhead Ribozyme ◽

Intramolecular Interactions ◽

Modern World ◽

Hairpin Ribozyme ◽

Living Fossils ◽

Evolution Of Life ◽

Catalytically Active ◽

World Hypothesis ◽

Rna World Hypothesis

Current cellular facts allow us to follow the link from chemical to biochemical metabolites, from the ancient to the modern world. In this context, the "RNA world" hypothesis proposes that early in the evolution of life, the ribozyme was responsible for the storage and transfer of genetic information and for the catalysis of biochemical reactions. Accordingly, the hammerhead ribozyme (HHR) and the hairpin ribozyme, belong to a family of endonucleolytic RNAs performing self-cleavage that might occur during replication. Furthermore, regarding the ultraconserved occurrence of HHR in several genomes of modern organisms (from mammals to small parasites and elsewhere), these small ribozymes have been regarded as living fossils of a primitive RNA world. They fold into 3D structures that generally require long-range intramolecular interactions to adopt the catalytically active conformation under specific physicochemical conditions. By studying viroids as plausible remains of ancient RNA, we recently demonstrated that they replicate in non-specific hosts, emphasizing their adaptability to different environments, which enhanced their survival probability over the ages. All these results exemplify ubiquitously features of life. Those are the versatility and efficiency of small RNAs, viroids and ribozymes, as well as their diversity and adaptability to various extreme conditions. All these traits must have originated in early life to generate novel RNA populations.

Download Full-text