The 23S methyl RNA motif is a conserved

RNA Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a polymeric molecule essential in various biological roles in coding, decoding, regulation and expression of genes. RNA and deoxyribonucleic acid ( DNA) are nucleic acids. Along with lipids, proteins, and carbohydra ...

structure found

upstream Upstream may refer to: * Upstream (bioprocess) * ''Upstream'' (film), a 1927 film by John Ford * Upstream (networking) * ''Upstream'' (newspaper), a newspaper covering the oil and gas industry * Upstream (petroleum industry) * Upstream (software ...

of genes predicted to encode rRNA methyltransferases, possibly for

23S rRNA 3S may refer to: * 3S, for single, seventies/1970s, stuck, a slang form of sheng nu, a derogatory Chinese term referring to unmarried women in their mid to late twenties * 3S gondola lift * 3-S treatment, a method for dealing with unwanted or unwelc ...

. However, in one case it is far (3 kilobases) from the rRNA methyltransferase gene. Nonetheless, it was proposed that this RNA could be a

cis-regulatory element ''Cis''-regulatory elements (CREs) or ''Cis''-regulatory modules (CRMs) are regions of non-coding DNA which regulate the transcription of neighboring genes. CREs are vital components of genetic regulatory networks, which in turn control morphoge ...

, an attractive hypothesis in view of the fact that rRNA methyltransferases can bind RNA, and therefore presumably the 23S methyl RNA. This regulatory strategy is common in bacteria to control levels of

ribosomal Ribosomes ( ) are macromolecular machines, found within all cells, that perform biological protein synthesis (mRNA translation). Ribosomes link amino acids together in the order specified by the codons of messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules to fo ...

subunits, using RNA motifs called ribosomal leaders. Additionally, 23S methyl RNAs have rho-independent transcription terminators downstream, which could be a mechanism of regulation. The 23S methyl RNA is found exclusively in the order of

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...

called

Lactobacillales Lactobacillales are an order of gram-positive, GC-content, low-GC, acid-tolerant, generally nonsporulating, Aerotolerant anaerobe, nonrespiring, either rod-shaped (bacillus (shape), bacilli) or spherical (cocci) bacteria that share common metabo ...

References

External links

* Cis-regulatory RNA elements {{molecular-cell-biology-stub