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Homology Of A Maturase To The Heart Of The Nuclear Spliceosome, Isabella Becker
Homology Of A Maturase To The Heart Of The Nuclear Spliceosome, Isabella Becker
Undergraduate Research Competition
Structural and biochemical evidence links group II introns as evolutionary precursors of nuclear introns. The spliceosome binds and excises nuclear introns. Maturases are prokaryotic enzymes that aid group II intron excision. The evolutionary ties between group II introns and nuclear introns suggest a possible link between maturases and the nuclear spliceosome. Structural analysis of Prp8, a core enzyme of the nuclear spliceosome has demonstrated this link and revealed similarity to prokaryotic maturases. Maturase K (MatK) is a chloroplast group II intron maturase. Unlike prokaryotic maturases, MatK binds to multiple intron substrates suggesting possible evolution akin to the nuclear spliceosome machinery. …