Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2015;12(10):1083-7.
doi: 10.1080/15476286.2015.1085149. Epub 2015 Sep 1.

Cis-regulatory RNA elements that regulate specialized ribosome activity

Shifeng Xue  1   2 , Maria Barna  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Cis-regulatory RNA elements that regulate specialized ribosome activity

Shifeng Xue et al. RNA Biol. 2015.

Abstract

Recent evidence has shown that the ribosome itself can play a highly regulatory role in the specialized translation of specific subpools of mRNAs, in particular at the level of ribosomal proteins (RP). However, the mechanism(s) by which this selection takes place has remained poorly understood. In our recent study, we discovered a combination of unique RNA elements in the 5'UTRs of mRNAs that allows for such control by the ribosome. These mRNAs contain a Translation Inhibitory Element (TIE) that inhibits general cap-dependent translation, and an Internal Ribosome Entry Site (IRES) that relies on a specific RP for activation. The unique combination of an inhibitor of general translation and an activator of specialized translation is key to ribosome-mediated control of gene expression. Here we discuss how these RNA regulatory elements provide a new level of control to protein expression and their implications for gene expression, organismal development and evolution.

Keywords: 5′UTR; IRES; RNA element; specialized ribosome; translation; translational inhibitory element.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
A Translation Inhibitory Element (TIE) in the 5′UTRs of certain mRNAs inhibits cap-dependent translation and frees the mRNA from cap-dependent translational regulation. An additional cis-regulatory element, the Internal Ribosome Entry Site (IRES), can recruit the ribosome through a cap-independent mechanism. Translation from the IRES enables specialized regulation by the ribosome itself. For example, RPL38 is required for the translation of several TIE and IRES-containing Hox transcripts. These RNA elements are analogous to transcriptional enhancers and silencers (bottom), which act together to regulate gene expression.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Xue S, Barna M. Specialized ribosomes: a new frontier in gene regulation and organismal biology. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 2012; 13:355-69; PMID:22617470; http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nrm3359 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kondrashov N, Pusic A, Stumpf CR, Shimizu K, Hsieh AC, Xue S, Ishijima J, Shiroishi T, Barna M. Ribosome-mediated specificity in Hox mRNA translation and vertebrate tissue patterning. Cell 2011; 145:383-97; PMID:21529712; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2011.03.028 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lee AS, Burdeinick-Kerr R, Whelan SPJ. A ribosome-specialized translation initiation pathway is required for cap-dependent translation of vesicular stomatitis virus mRNAs. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2013; 110:324-9; PMID:23169626; http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1216454109 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Vesper O, Amitai S, Belitsky M, Byrgazov K, Kaberdina ACC, Engelberg-Kulka H, Moll I. Selective translation of leaderless mRNAs by specialized ribosomes generated by MazF in Escherichia coli. Cell 2011; 147:147-57; PMID:21944167; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2011.07.047 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Komili S, Farny NG, Roth FP, Silver PA. Functional specificity among ribosomal proteins regulates gene expression. Cell 2007; 131:557-71; PMID:17981122; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2007.08.037 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

LinkOut - more resources