The Coronavirus 3′ UTR pseudoknot is an

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 in the

coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the com ...

genome. Coronaviruses contain 30 kb single-stranded positive-sense RNA

genome In the fields of molecular biology and genetics, a genome is all the genetic information of an organism. It consists of nucleotide sequences of DNA (or RNA in RNA viruses). The nuclear genome includes protein-coding genes and non-coding ge ...

s. The 3′ UTR region of these coronavirus genomes contains a conserved ~55 nucleotide

pseudoknot __NOTOC__ A pseudoknot is a nucleic acid secondary structure containing at least two stem-loop structures in which half of one stem is intercalated between the two halves of another stem. The pseudoknot was first recognized in the turnip yellow ...

structure which is necessary for viral genome replication. The mechanism of cis-regulation is unclear, but this element is postulated to function in the plus-strand. Other RNA families identified in the coronavirus include the

coronavirus frameshifting stimulation element In molecular biology, the coronavirus frameshifting stimulation element is a conserved stem-loop of RNA found in coronaviruses that can promote ribosomal frameshifting. Such RNA molecules interact with a downstream region to form a pseudoknot str ...

, the

coronavirus 3′ stem-loop II-like motif (s2m) The Coronavirus 3′ stem-loop II-like motif (also known as s2m) is a secondary structure motif identified in the 3′ UTR, 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) of astrovirus, coronavirus and equine rhinovirus genomes. Its function is unknown, but ...

and the coronavirus packaging signal.

References

External links

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