核仁小分子RNA(snoRNA)是一类广泛分布于真核生物细胞核仁的小分子非编码RNA,具有保守的结构元件,并以此划分为3大类:box C/D snoRNA、box H/ACA snoRNA和MRP RNA。其中box C/D和box H/ACA是已知snoRNA的主要类型,以碱基配对的方式分别指导着核糖体RNA的甲基化和假尿嘧啶化修饰。研究发现,s n o R N A除了在核糖体R N A的生物合成中发挥作用之外,还能够指导snRNA、tR N A和m R N A的转录后修饰。此外,还有相当数量的snoRNA功能不明,被称为孤儿snoRNA(orphan snoRNA)。在哺乳动物的孤儿snoRNA中,印迹snoRNA(imprinted snoRNA)是最为特殊的一群,由基因组印迹区编码,具有明显的组织表达特异性。原核生物古细菌中类snoRNA的鉴定表明这些非编码RNA家族成员的古老起源;而哺乳动物中大量的snoRNA反转座子的存在更为人们探索snoRNA在基因组中扩增和功能进化提供了新的思路。
Transfer RNAs(tRNAs) hold a central place in protein synthesis by interpreting the genetic information stored in DNA into the amino acid sequence of protein,thus functioning as "adaptor" molecules.In recent years,however,various studies have shown that tRNAs have additional functions beyond participating in protein synthesis.When suffering from certain nutritional stresses,tRNAs change the level of aminoacylation to became uncharged,and these uncharged tRNAs act as effector molecules to regulate global gene expression,so that the stressed organism copes with the adverse environmental stresses.In budding yeast and certain mammalian cells,the retrograde movement of mature tRNAs from cytoplasm to nucleus serves as a mechanism for the surveillance system within the nucleus to continue monitoring the integrity of tRNAs.On the other hand,this retrograde action effectively reduces the global protein synthesis level under conditions of nutritional starvation.Quite recently,various publications have shown that tRNAs are not stable molecules in an absolute sense.Under certain physiological or environmental stresses,they are specifically cleaved into fragments of different lengths in the anticodon loop or anticodon left arm.These cleavages are not a meaningless random degradation phenomenon.Instead,a novel class of signal molecules such as tRNA halves or sitRNAs may be produced,which are closely correlated with the modulation of global gene expression.Investigation of the regulatory functions of tRNAs is a frontier,which seeks to reveal the structural and functional diversity of tRNAs as well as their vital functions during the expression of genetic information.
LI Yan & ZHOU Hui Key Laboratory of Gene Engineering of the Ministry of Education,State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol,Sun Yan-Sen University Guangzhou 510275,China
