Escherichia coli tmRNA functions uniquely as both tRNA and mRNA and possesses structural elements similar to canonical tRNAs. To test whether this mimicry extends to post-transcriptional modification, the technique of combined liquid chromatography/ electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC/ESIMS) and sequence data were used to determine the molecular masses of all oligonucleotides produced...

tmrna (also known as ssra or 10sa rna) is so-named for its dual nature so that can function like trna and mrna. tmrna involved in a trans-translation reaction that truly is a kind of translational quality control system. this process contributes to the recycling of stalled translation complexes at the end of an mrna lacking a stop codon or at an internal mrna cluster of rare codons in a process...

The RNA world hypothesis refers to the early period on earth in which RNA was central in assuring both genetic continuity and catalysis. The end of this era coincided with the development of the genetic code and protein synthesis, symbolized by the apparition of the first non-random messenger RNA (mRNA). Modern transfer-messenger RNA (tmRNA) is a unique hybrid molecule which has the properties ...

In bacteria, ribosomes often become stalled and are released by a trans-translation process mediated by transfer-messenger RNA (tmRNA). In the absence of tmRNA, however, there is evidence that stalled ribosomes are released from non-stop mRNAs. Here, we show a novel ribosome rescue system mediated by a small basic protein, YaeJ, from Escherichia coli, which is similar in sequence and structure ...

tmRNA is found in the usual one-piece form in most cyanobacteria, but a small clade has an unusual two-piece form, resulting from processing of a circularly permuted precursor RNA. Here, the secondary structure of the cyanobacterial one-piece tmRNA is established by phylogenetic sequence comparison; it deviates from most tmRNAs in having an extra (fifth) pseudoknot and a branched structure at t...

BACKGROUND The tmRNA quality control system recognizes stalled translation complexes and facilitates ribosome recycling in a process termed 'ribosome rescue'. During ribosome rescue, nascent chains are tagged with the tmRNA-encoded SsrA peptide, which targets tagged proteins for degradation. In Escherichia coli, tmRNA rescues ribosomes arrested on truncated messages, as well as ribosomes that a...

In Escherichia coli, prolonged translational arrest allows mRNA degradation into the A site of stalled ribosomes. The enzyme that cleaves the A-site codon is not known, but its activity requires RNase II to degrade mRNA downstream of the ribosome. This A-site mRNA cleavage process is thought to function in translation quality control because stalled ribosomes are recycled from A-site truncated ...