Polynucleotide Phosphorylase (PNPase) is a bifunctional

enzyme Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as products ...

with a phosphorolytic 3' to 5'

exoribonuclease An exoribonuclease is an exonuclease ribonuclease, which are enzymes that degrade RNA by removing terminal nucleotides from either the 5' end or the 3' end of the RNA molecule. Enzymes that remove nucleotides from the 5' end are called ''5'-3 ...

activity and a 3'-terminal

oligonucleotide Oligonucleotides are short DNA or RNA molecules, oligomers, that have a wide range of applications in genetic testing, research, and forensics. Commonly made in the laboratory by solid-phase chemical synthesis, these small bits of nucleic acids ...

polymerase activity. That is, it dismantles the RNA chain starting at the 3' end and working toward the 5' end. It also synthesizes long, highly heteropolymeric tails ''in vivo''. It accounts for all of the observed residual polyadenylation in strains of ''Escherichia coli'' missing the normal polyadenylation enzyme. Discovered by

Marianne Grunberg-Manago Marianne Grunberg-Manago (January 6, 1921 – January 3, 2013) was a Soviet-born French biochemist. Her work helped make possible key discoveries about the nature of the genetic code. Grunberg-Manago was the first woman to lead the International U ...

working in

Severo Ochoa Severo Ochoa de Albornoz (; 24 September 1905 – 1 November 1993) was a Spanish physician and biochemist, and winner of the 1959 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine together with Arthur Kornberg for their discovery of "the mechanisms in ...

's lab in 1955, the RNA-polymerization activity of PNPase was initially believed to be responsible for DNA-dependent synthesis of messenger RNA, a notion that got disproved by the late 1950s. It is involved in mRNA processing and degradation in bacteria, plants, and animals. In humans, the enzyme is encoded by the gene. In its active form, the protein forms a ring structure consisting of three PNPase molecules. Each PNPase molecule consists of two RNase PH domains, an S1 RNA binding domain and a K-homology domain. The protein is present in

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

and in the

chloroplasts A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant and algal cells. The photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll captures the energy from sunlight, converts it, and stores it in ...

and mitochondria of some

eukaryotic Eukaryotes () are organisms whose Cell (biology), cells have a cell nucleus, nucleus. All animals, plants, fungi, and many unicellular organisms, are Eukaryotes. They belong to the group of organisms Eukaryota or Eukarya, which is one of the ...

cells. In eukaryotes and archaea, a structurally and evolutionary related complex exists, called the ''

exosome complex The exosome complex (or PM/Scl complex, often just called the exosome) is a multi-protein intracellular Protein complex, complex capable of degrading various types of RNA (ribonucleic acid) molecules. Exosome complexes are found in both eukaryo ...

''. The same abbreviation (''PNPase'') is also used for another, otherwise unrelated enzyme,

Purine nucleoside phosphorylase Purine nucleoside phosphorylase, PNP, PNPase or inosine phosphorylase () is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the ''NP'' gene. It catalyzes the chemical reaction :purine nucleoside + phosphate \rightleftharpoons purine + alpha-D-ribose 1- ...

Model organisms

Model organisms have been used in the study of PNPT1 function. A conditional

knockout mouse A knockout mouse, or knock-out mouse, is a genetically modified mouse (''Mus musculus'') in which researchers have inactivated, or " knocked out", an existing gene by replacing it or disrupting it with an artificial piece of DNA. They are importa ...

line, called ''Pnpt1^{tm1a(KOMP)Wtsi}'' was generated as part of the International Knockout Mouse Consortium program — a high-throughput mutagenesis project to generate and distribute animal models of disease to interested scientists. Male and female animals underwent a standardized

phenotypic screen In genetics, the phenotype () is the set of observable characteristics or traits of an organism. The term covers the organism's morphology or physical form and structure, its developmental processes, its biochemical and physiological proper ...

to determine the effects of deletion. Twenty six tests were carried out on

mutant In biology, and especially in genetics, a mutant is an organism or a new genetic character arising or resulting from an instance of mutation, which is generally an alteration of the DNA sequence of the genome or chromosome of an organism. It ...

mice and two significant abnormalities were observed. No

homozygous Zygosity (the noun, zygote, is from the Greek "yoked," from "yoke") () is the degree to which both copies of a chromosome or gene have the same genetic sequence. In other words, it is the degree of similarity of the alleles in an organism. Mo ...

embryos were identified during gestation, and therefore none survived until

weaning Weaning is the process of gradually introducing an infant human or another mammal to what will be its adult diet while withdrawing the supply of its mother's milk. The process takes place only in mammals, as only mammals produce milk. The infan ...

. The remaining tests were carried out on

heterozygous Zygosity (the noun, zygote, is from the Greek "yoked," from "yoke") () is the degree to which both copies of a chromosome or gene have the same genetic sequence. In other words, it is the degree of similarity of the alleles in an organism. Mo ...

mutant adult mice; no additional significant abnormalities were observed in these animals.

References

External links

* {{Portal bar, Biology, border=no Ribonucleases EC 2.7.7 Genes mutated in mice 1955 in biology