Retrozymes are a unique family of non-autonomous retrotransposons with hammerhead ribozymes that propagate in plants through circular RNAs.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Catalytic RNAs, or ribozymes, are regarded as fossils of a prebiotic RNA world that have remained in the genomes of modern organisms. The simplest ribozymes are the small self-cleaving RNAs, like the hammerhead ribozyme, which have been historically considered biological oddities restricted to some RNA pathogens. Recent data, however, indicate that small self-cleaving ribozymes are widespread in genomes, although their functions are still unknown.

Results

We reveal that hammerhead ribozyme sequences in plant genomes form part of a new family of small non-autonomous retrotransposons with hammerhead ribozymes, referred to as retrozymes. These elements contain two long terminal repeats of approximately 350 bp, each harbouring a hammerhead ribozyme that delimitates a

SUBMITTER: Cervera A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4918200 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature