Ch.17: Non-coding RNAs Flashcards
In most cells…
ncRNAs are more abundant than mRNAs and perform a diverse set of functions and can act as ribozymes, blockers or decoys
Ribozyme
RNA molecules with catalytic function
Blocker
A ncRNA physically prevents or blocks a cellular process from happening
Decoy
A ncRNA recognizes another ncRNA and sequesters it
What is the idea of the “RNA World”?
the subsequent discovery that hat RNA can act as enzymes by themselves and a RNA ribozyme catalyzes the peptide bond during
protein synthesis
What is a con of the “RNA World” theory?
that proteins were always available and were part
of the evolutionary process
What does dsRNA contain and do?
contains both antisense RNA and sense RNA is even more effective at inhibiting
mRNA translation than either antisense RNA or sense RNA alone
What is RNA interference mediated by?
microRNAs (miRNAs) or small-interfering RNAs (siRNAs)
Summarizes the mechanism of RNA interference
DS pre-miRNA from the cell or DS pre-siRNA from a viral infection associates with
proteins to form a RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) that silences mRNA
What do small nucleolar RNAs do?
direct covalent modifications to ribosomal RNAs
What does the Crispr gene contain?
a series of repeats that are interspersed with short,
unique sequences, called spacers that are derived form invading bacteriophage
What does the Crispr gene produce?
a ncRNA called pre-crRNA, which
contains the unique spacer sequences from bacteriophages
and the repeat sequence; A region of the tracrRNA is complementary to the repeat
sequences of the pre-crRNA
What do PIWI-interacting RNAs do?
Silence transposable elements