Repurposing the mammalian RNA-binding protein Musashi-1 as an allosteric translation repressor in bacteria.

ABSTRACT: The RNA recognition motif (RRM) is the most common RNA-binding protein domain identified in nature. However, RRM-containing proteins are only prevalent in eukaryotic phyla, in which they play central regulatory roles. Here, we engineered an orthogonal post-transcriptional control system of gene expression in the bacterium Escherichia coli with the mammalian RNA-binding protein Musashi-1, which is a stem cell marker with neurodevelopmental role that contains two canonical RRMs. In the circuit, Musashi-1 is regulated transcriptionally and works as an allosteric translation repressor thanks to a specific interaction with the N-terminal coding region of a messenger RNA and its structural plasticity to respond to fatty acids. We fully characterized the genetic system at the population an

SUBMITTER: Dolcemascolo R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10942595 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature