scholarly journals Synthesis and Assembly of the Box C+D Small Nucleolar RNPs

2000 ◽  
Vol 20 (8) ◽  
pp. 2650-2659 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denis L. J. Lafontaine ◽  
David Tollervey

ABSTRACT Two core small nucleolar RNP (snoRNP) proteins, Nop1p (fibrillarin in vertebrates) and Nop58p (also known as Nop5p) have previously been reported to be specifically associated with the box C+D class of small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs). Here we report that Nop56p, a protein related in sequence to Nop58p, is a bona fide box C+D snoRNP component; all tested box C+D snoRNAs were coprecipitated with protein A-tagged Nop56p. Analysis of in vivo snoRNP assembly indicated that Nop56p was stably associated with the snoRNAs only in the presence of Nop1p. In contrast, Nop58p and Nop1p associate independently with the snoRNAs. Genetic depletion of Nop56p resulted in inhibition of early pre-rRNA processing events at sites A0, A1, and A2 and mild depletion of 18S rRNA. However, Nop56p depletion did not lead to codepletion of the box C+D snoRNAs. This is in contrast to Nop58p, which was required for the accumulation of all tested box C+D snoRNAs. Unexpectedly, we found that Nop1p was specifically required for the synthesis and accumulation of box C+D snoRNAs processed from pre-mRNA introns and polycistronic transcripts.

1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 4382-4390
Author(s):  
O J Rimoldi ◽  
B Raghu ◽  
M K Nag ◽  
G L Eliceiri

We have recently described three novel human small nucleolar RNA species with unique nucleotide sequences, which were named E1, E2, and E3. The present article describes specific psoralen photocross-linking in whole HeLa cells of E1, E2, and E3 RNAs to nucleolar pre-rRNA. These small RNAs were cross-linked to different sections of pre-rRNA. E1 RNA was cross-linked to two segments of nucleolar pre-rRNA; one was within residues 697 to 1163 of the 5' external transcribed spacer, and the other one was between nucleotides 664 and 1021 of the 18S rRNA sequence. E2 RNA was cross-linked to a region within residues 3282 to 3667 of the 28S rRNA sequence. E3 RNA was cross-linked to a sequence between positions 1021 and 1639 of the 18S rRNA sequence. Primer extension analysis located psoralen adducts in E1, E2, and E3 RNAs that were enriched in high-molecular-weight fractions of nucleolar RNA. Some of these psoralen adducts might be cross-links of E1, E2, and E3 RNAs to large nucleolar RNA. Antisense oligodeoxynucleotide-targeted RNase H digestion of nucleolar extracts revealed accessible segments in these three small RNAs. The accessible regions were within nucleotide positions 106 to 130 of E1 RNA, positions 24 to 48 and 42 to 66 of E2 RNA, and positions 7 to 16 and about 116 to 122 of E3 RNA. Some of the molecules of these small nucleolar RNAs sedimented as if associated with larger structures when both nondenatured RNA and a nucleolar extract were analyzed.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 4382-4390 ◽  
Author(s):  
O J Rimoldi ◽  
B Raghu ◽  
M K Nag ◽  
G L Eliceiri

We have recently described three novel human small nucleolar RNA species with unique nucleotide sequences, which were named E1, E2, and E3. The present article describes specific psoralen photocross-linking in whole HeLa cells of E1, E2, and E3 RNAs to nucleolar pre-rRNA. These small RNAs were cross-linked to different sections of pre-rRNA. E1 RNA was cross-linked to two segments of nucleolar pre-rRNA; one was within residues 697 to 1163 of the 5' external transcribed spacer, and the other one was between nucleotides 664 and 1021 of the 18S rRNA sequence. E2 RNA was cross-linked to a region within residues 3282 to 3667 of the 28S rRNA sequence. E3 RNA was cross-linked to a sequence between positions 1021 and 1639 of the 18S rRNA sequence. Primer extension analysis located psoralen adducts in E1, E2, and E3 RNAs that were enriched in high-molecular-weight fractions of nucleolar RNA. Some of these psoralen adducts might be cross-links of E1, E2, and E3 RNAs to large nucleolar RNA. Antisense oligodeoxynucleotide-targeted RNase H digestion of nucleolar extracts revealed accessible segments in these three small RNAs. The accessible regions were within nucleotide positions 106 to 130 of E1 RNA, positions 24 to 48 and 42 to 66 of E2 RNA, and positions 7 to 16 and about 116 to 122 of E3 RNA. Some of the molecules of these small nucleolar RNAs sedimented as if associated with larger structures when both nondenatured RNA and a nucleolar extract were analyzed.


Circulation ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (Suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisheng Zhang ◽  
Jiaohui Wu ◽  
Andrew J Vista ◽  
Leigh Brian ◽  
Yushi Bai ◽  
...  

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) contribute to atherogenesis. An unusual mechanism that increases cellular ROS levels and oxidative stress involves 4 ubiquitously expressed noncoding small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) from introns of the ribosomal protein L13a ( Rpl13a ) locus: U32a , U33 , U34 , and U35a . We tested the hypothesis that these snoRNAs promote aortic smooth muscle cell (SMC) activation and vascular inflammation, by using “snoKO” mice with targeted deletion of the 4 snoRNAs (but not Rpl13a ). Compared with congenic WT SMCs, snoKO SMCs showed 40±20% lower ROS levels, assessed by DCF fluorescence ( p <0.02). Congruently, ROS levels were 35±5% lower in snoKO than WT aorta and carotid frozen sections ( p <0.01), assessed by CellROX Orange fluorescence. Proliferation and migration evoked by FBS and PDGF-BB, respectively, were each 30±10% less in snoKO than WT SMCs ( p <0.01 for each). To assess SMC migration and proliferation in vivo, we performed carotid artery endothelial denudation. Before injury, snoKO and WT carotid arteries were morphologically equivalent. Four wk after injury, carotid neointimal hyperplasia was 57±9% less and luminal area was 40±20 % more in snoKO than in WT mice ( p <0.01). WT and snoKO mice had equivalent heart rates and systolic blood pressures by tail-cuff plethysmography: 480±20 vs 420±80 beats/min; 133±5, 132±7 mm Hg, respectively (n=5/group). To test whether snoRNAs affect atherosclerosis, we orthotopically transplanted carotid arteries from WT and snoKO mice into congenic Apoe -/- mice. Six wk post-op, atherosclerotic neointima was 70±10% smaller in snoKO than in WT carotids ( p <0.01). To assess SMC-to-foam-cell transdifferentiation, which is ROS-dependent, carotid cross-sections were stained for apoE to identify graft-derived cells and for cholesteryl ester with BODIPY. BODIPY + foam cells comprised 21±3% and 11±7% of neointimal area in WT and snoKO carotids, respectively ( p <0.05). Confocal co-localization of apoE and BODIPY (optical slice thickness 1 μm) showed that graft-derived foam cells were 2.0±0.6-fold more prevalent in WT than in snoKO carotids ( p <0.01). We conclude that Rpl13a snoRNAs promote SMC ROS levels, proliferation and migration in vitro and in vivo, and that these snoRNAs augment atherosclerosis.


Biomolecules ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 128
Author(s):  
Kasper Andersen ◽  
Henrik Nielsen

In eukaryotes, 18S, 5.8S, and 28S rRNAs are transcribed as precursor molecules that undergo extensive modification and nucleolytic processing to form the mature rRNA species. Central in the process are the small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs). The majority of snoRNAs guide site specific chemical modifications but a few are involved in defining pre-rRNA cleavages. Here, we describe an unusual snoRNA (TtnuCD32) belonging to the box C/D subgroup from the ciliate Tetrahymena thermophila. We show that TtnuCD32 is unlikely to function as a modification guide snoRNA and that it is critical for cell viability. Cell lines with genetic knock-down of TtnuCD32 were impaired in growth and displayed two novel and apparently unrelated phenotypes. The most prominent phenotype is the accumulation of processing intermediates of 5.8S rRNA. The second phenotype is the decrease in abundance of a ~100 nt 26S rRNA fragment of unknown function. Sequence analysis demonstrated that TtnuCD32 share features with the essential snoRNA U14 but an alternative candidate (TtnuCD25) was more closely related to other U14 sequences. This, together with the fact that the observed rRNA processing phenotypes were not similar to what has been observed in U14 depleted cells, suggests that TtnuCD32 is a U14 homolog that has gained novel functions.


Methods ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 276-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben Liu ◽  
Jingwei Ni ◽  
Maurille J. Fournier

1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (8) ◽  
pp. 5441-5452 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah J. Lee ◽  
Susan J. Baserga

ABSTRACT The function of the U3 small nucleolar ribonucleoprotein (snoRNP) is central to the events surrounding pre-rRNA processing, as evidenced by the severe defects in cleavage of pre-18S rRNA precursors observed upon depletion of the U3 RNA and its unique protein components. Although the precise function of each component remains unclear, since U3 snoRNA levels remain unchanged upon genetic depletion of these proteins, it is likely that the proteins themselves have significant roles in the cleavage reactions. Here we report the identification of two previously undescribed protein components of the U3 snoRNP, representing the first snoRNP components identified by using the two-hybrid methodology. By screening for proteins that physically associate with the U3 snoRNP-specific protein, Mpp10p, we have identified Imp3p (22 kDa) and Imp4p (34 kDa) (named for interacting with Mpp10p). The genes encoding both proteins are essential in yeast. Genetic depletion reveals that both proteins are critical for U3 snoRNP function in pre-18S rRNA processing at the A0, A1, and A2 sites in the pre-rRNA. Both Imp proteins associate with Mpp10p in vivo, and both are complexed only with the U3 snoRNA. Conservation of RNA binding domains between Imp3p and the S4 family of ribosomal proteins suggests that it might associate with RNA directly. However, as with other U3 snoRNP-specific proteins, neither Imp3p nor Imp4p is required for maintenance of U3 snoRNA integrity. Imp3p and Imp4p are therefore novel protein components specific to the U3 snoRNP with critical roles in pre-rRNA cleavage events.


1998 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 1181-1189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Petfalski ◽  
Thomas Dandekar ◽  
Yves Henry ◽  
David Tollervey

ABSTRACT The genes encoding the small nucleolar RNA (snoRNA) species snR190 and U14 are located close together in the genome of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Here we report that these two snoRNAs are synthesized by processing of a larger common transcript. In strains mutant for two 5′→3′ exonucleases, Xrn1p and Rat1p, families of 5′-extended forms of snR190 and U14 accumulate; these have 5′ extensions of up to 42 and 55 nucleotides, respectively. We conclude that the 5′ ends of both snR190 and U14 are generated by exonuclease digestion from upstream processing sites. In contrast to snR190 and U14, the snoRNAs U18 and U24 are excised from the introns of pre-mRNAs which encode proteins in their exonic sequences. Analysis of RNA extracted from a dbr1-Δ strain, which lacks intron lariat-debranching activity, shows that U24 can be synthesized only from the debranched lariat. In contrast, a substantial level of U18 can be synthesized in the absence of debranching activity. The 5′ ends of these snoRNAs are also generated by Xrn1p and Rat1p. The same exonucleases are responsible for the degradation of several excised fragments of the pre-rRNA spacer regions, in addition to generating the 5′ end of the 5.8S rRNA. Processing of the pre-rRNA and both intronic and polycistronic snoRNAs therefore involves common components.


1995 ◽  
Vol 73 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 845-858 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan A. Gerbi

A growing list of small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) has been characterized in eukaryotes. They are transcribed by RNA polymerase II or III; some snoRNAs are encoded in the introns of other genes. The nonintronic polymerase II transcribed snoRNAs receive a trimethylguanosine cap, probably in the nucleus, and move to the nucleolus. snoRNAs are complexed with proteins, sometimes including fibrillarin. Localization and maintenance in the nucleolus of some snoRNAs requires the presence of initial precursor rRNA (pre-rRNA). Many snoRNAs have conserved sequence boxes C and D and a 3′ terminal stem; the roles of these features are discussed. Functional assays done for a few snoRNAs indicate their roles in rRNA processing for cleavage of the external and internal transcribed spacers (ETS and ITS). U3 is the most abundant snoRNA and is needed for cleavage of ETS1 and ITS1; experimental results on U3 binding sites in pre-rRNA are reviewed. 18S rRNA production also needs U14, U22, and snR30 snoRNAs, whereas U8 snoRNA is needed for 5.8S and 28S rRNA production. Other snoRNAs that are complementary to 18S or 28S rRNA might act as chaperones to mediate RNA folding. Whether snoRNAs join together in a large rRNA processing complex (the "processome") is not yet clear. It has been hypothesized that such complexes could anchor the ends of loops in pre-rRNA containing 18S or 28S rRNA, thereby replacing base-paired stems found in pre-rRNA of prokaryotes.Key words: RNA processing, small nucleolar RNAs, nucleolus, ribosome biogenesis, rRNA processing complex.


1998 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 2360-2370 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denis L. J. Lafontaine ◽  
Thomas Preiss ◽  
David Tollervey

ABSTRACT One of the few rRNA modifications conserved between bacteria and eukaryotes is the base dimethylation present at the 3′ end of the small subunit rRNA. In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, this modification is carried out by Dim1p. We previously reported that genetic depletion of Dim1p not only blocked this modification but also strongly inhibited the pre-rRNA processing steps that lead to the synthesis of 18S rRNA. This prevented the formation of mature but unmodified 18S rRNA. The processing steps inhibited were nucleolar, and consistent with this, Dim1p was shown to localize mostly to this cellular compartment. dim1-2 was isolated from a library of conditionally lethal alleles of DIM1. In dim1-2strains, pre-rRNA processing was not affected at the permissive temperature for growth, but dimethylation was blocked, leading to strong accumulation of nondimethylated 18S rRNA. This demonstrates that the enzymatic function of Dim1p in dimethylation can be separated from its involvement in pre-rRNA processing. The growth rate ofdim1-2 strains was not affected, showing the dimethylation to be dispensable in vivo. Extracts of dim1-2 strains, however, were incompetent for translation in vitro. This suggests that dimethylation is required under the suboptimal in vitro conditions but only fine-tunes ribosomal function in vivo. Unexpectedly, when transcription of pre-rRNA was driven by a polymerase II PGKpromoter, its processing became insensitive to temperature-sensitive mutations in DIM1 or to depletion of Dim1p. This observation, which demonstrates that Dim1p is not directly required for pre-rRNA processing reactions, is consistent with the inhibition of pre-rRNA processing by an active repression system in the absence of Dim1p.


2000 ◽  
Vol 20 (13) ◽  
pp. 4522-4531 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xavier Darzacq ◽  
Tamás Kiss

ABSTRACT The C and D box-containing (box C/D) small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) function in the nucleolytic processing and 2′-O-methylation of precursor rRNA. In vertebrates, most box C/D snoRNAs are processed from debranched pre-mRNA introns by exonucleolytic activities. Elements directing accurate snoRNA excision are located within the snoRNA itself; they comprise the conserved C and D boxes and an adjoining 5′,3′-terminal stem. Although the terminal stem has been demonstrated to be essential for snoRNA accumulation, many snoRNAs lack a terminal helix. To identify thecis-acting elements supporting the accumulation of intron-encoded box C/D snoRNAs devoid of a terminal stem, we have investigated the in vivo processing of the human U46 snoRNA and an artificial snoRNA from the human β-globin pre-mRNA. We demonstrate that internal and/or external stem structures located within the snoRNA or in the intronic flanking sequences support the accumulation of mammalian box C/D snoRNAs lacking a canonical terminal stem. In the intronic precursor RNA, transiently formed external and/or stable internal base-pairing interactions fold the C and D boxes together and therefore facilitate the binding of snoRNP proteins. Since the external intronic stems are degraded during snoRNA processing, we propose that the C and D boxes alone can provide metabolic stability for the mature snoRNA.


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