A structural determinant required for RNA editing

RNA editing by adenosine deaminases acting on RNAs (ADARs) can be both specific and non-specific, depending on the substrate. Specific editing of particular adenosines may depend on the overall sequence and structural context. However, the detailed mechanisms underlying these preferences are not fully understood. Here, we show that duplex structures mimicking an editing site in the Gabra3 pre-mRNA unexpectedly fail to support RNA editing at the Gabra3 I/M site, although phylogenetic analysis suggest an evolutionarily conserved duplex structure essential for efficient RNA editing. These unusual results led us to revisit the structural requirement for this editing by mutagenesis analysis. In vivo nuclear injection experiments of mutated editing substrates demonstrate that a non-conserved structure is a determinant for editing. This structure contains bulges either on the same or the strand opposing the edited adenosine. The position of these bulges and the distance to the edited base regulate editing. Moreover, elevated folding temperature can lead to a switch in RNA editing suggesting an RNA structural change. Our results indicate the importance of RNA tertiary structure in determining RNA editing.