Identification of the RNA2 protein of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The human U5-200kD DEXH-box protein unwinds U4/U6 RNA duplices in vitro

Splicing of nuclear precursors of mRNA (pre-mRNA) involves dynamic interactions between the RNA constituents of the spliceosome. The rearrangement of RNA-RNA interactions, such as the unwinding of the U4/U6 duplex, is believed to be driven by ATP-dependent RNA helicases. We recently have shown that spliceosomal U5 small nuclear ribonucleoproteins (snRNPs) from HeLa cells contain two proteins, U5-200kD and U5-100kD, which share homology with the DEAD/DEXH-box families of RNA helicases. Here we demonstrate that purified U5 snRNPs exhibit ATP-dependent unwinding of U4/U6 RNA duplices in vitro. To identify the protein responsible for this activity, U5 snRNPs were depleted of a subset of proteins under high salt concentrations and assayed for RNA unwinding. The activity was retained in U5 snRNPs that contain the U5-200kD protein but lack U5-100kD, suggesting that the U5-200kD protein could mediate U4/U6 duplex unwinding. Finally, U5-200kD was purified to homogeneity by glycerol gradient centrifugation of U5 snRNP proteins in the presence of sodium thiocyanate, followed by ion exchange chromatography. The RNA unwinding activity was found to reside exclusively with the U5-200kD DEXH-box protein. Our data raise the interesting possibility that this RNA helicase catalyzes unwinding of the U4/U6 RNA duplex in the spliceosome.

Interactions of PRP2 protein with pre-mRNA splicing complexes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

PRP2 protein of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is required for the pre-mRNA splicing reaction but not for the early stages of spliceosome assembly. Using anti-PRP2 antibodies we demonstrate that PRP2 protein is associated with spliceosomes prior to, and throughout step 1 of the splicing reaction. Heat-inactivated prp2 protein, by contrast, does not seem to associate with spliceosomes. By elution of electrophoretically distinct spliceosomal complexes from non-denaturing gels we identify the specific complex with which PRP2 initially interacts in the pathway of spliceosome assembly.

Expression of the avian gag-myc oncogene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The gag-myc oncogenic sequence of the avian retrovirus MC29 was first inserted in a multicopy expression vector allowing its expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The oncogene transcripts were detected in yeast by Northern blot hybridization and gag-myc proteins were revealed by immunoprecipitation. On solid medium, the average size of gag-myc transformant colonies was smaller than control. In liquid cultures, the gag-myc strains had a doubling time of 4.7 h compared with 3.1 h in the controls. In one of the recipient strains, and after an initial transient period of 5 days, the gag-myc transformants became physiologically indistinguishable from control. In another recipient strain, the slow-growth phenotype is permanent. Plasmid instability is increased in gag-myc transformants. When a single copy of the gag-myc gene was inserted in a yeast chromosome, no phenotype was observed, showing that slow growth is the consequence of plasmid loss.

PRP4 (RNA4) from Saccharomyces cerevisiae: its gene product is associated with the U4/U6 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particle

The PRP4 (RNA4) gene product is involved in nuclear mRNA processing in yeast cells; we have previously cloned the gene by complementation of a temperature-sensitive mutation. Sequence and transcript analyses of the cloned gene predicted the gene product to be a 52-kilodalton protein, which was confirmed with antibodies raised against the PRP4 gene product. These antibodies inhibited precursor mRNA splicing in vitro, demonstrating a direct role of PRP4 in splicing. Immunoprecipitations with the antibodies indicated that the PRP4 protein is associated with the U4/U6 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particle.

PRP4 (RNA4) from Saccharomyces cerevisiae: its gene product is associated with the U4/U6 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particle

The PRP4 (RNA4) gene product is involved in nuclear mRNA processing in yeast cells; we have previously cloned the gene by complementation of a temperature-sensitive mutation. Sequence and transcript analyses of the cloned gene predicted the gene product to be a 52-kilodalton protein, which was confirmed with antibodies raised against the PRP4 gene product. These antibodies inhibited precursor mRNA splicing in vitro, demonstrating a direct role of PRP4 in splicing. Immunoprecipitations with the antibodies indicated that the PRP4 protein is associated with the U4/U6 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particle.

Cloning of the RNA8 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, detection of the RNA8 protein, and demonstration that it is essential for nuclear pre-mRNA splicing

Strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae that bear the temperature-sensitive mutation rna8-1 are defective in nuclear pre-mRNA splicing at the restrictive temperature (36 degrees C), suggesting that the RNA8 gene encodes a component of the splicing machinery. The RNA8 gene was cloned by complementation of the temperature-sensitive growth defect of an rna8-1 mutant strain. Integrative transformation and gene disruption experiments confirmed the identity of the cloned DNA and demonstrated that the RNA8 gene encodes an essential function. The RNA8 gene was shown to be represented once per S. cerevisiae haploid genome and to encode a low-abundance transcript of approximately 7.4 kilobases. By using antisera raised against beta-galactosidase-RNA8 fusion proteins, the RNA8 gene product was identified in S. cerevisiae cell extracts as a low-abundance protein of approximately 260 kilodaltons. Immunodepletion of the RNA8 protein specifically abolished the activity of S. cerevisiae in vitro splicing extracts, confirming that RNA8 plays an essential role in splicing.

Cloning of the RNA8 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, detection of the RNA8 protein, and demonstration that it is essential for nuclear pre-mRNA splicing

Strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae that bear the temperature-sensitive mutation rna8-1 are defective in nuclear pre-mRNA splicing at the restrictive temperature (36 degrees C), suggesting that the RNA8 gene encodes a component of the splicing machinery. The RNA8 gene was cloned by complementation of the temperature-sensitive growth defect of an rna8-1 mutant strain. Integrative transformation and gene disruption experiments confirmed the identity of the cloned DNA and demonstrated that the RNA8 gene encodes an essential function. The RNA8 gene was shown to be represented once per S. cerevisiae haploid genome and to encode a low-abundance transcript of approximately 7.4 kilobases. By using antisera raised against beta-galactosidase-RNA8 fusion proteins, the RNA8 gene product was identified in S. cerevisiae cell extracts as a low-abundance protein of approximately 260 kilodaltons. Immunodepletion of the RNA8 protein specifically abolished the activity of S. cerevisiae in vitro splicing extracts, confirming that RNA8 plays an essential role in splicing.

Identification of a yeast snRNP protein and detection of snRNP-snRNP interactions

The RNA8 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes an unusually large (260 kd) protein required for pre-mRNA splicing. Immunological procedures have been used to demonstrate that the RNA8 protein is in stable association with the small nuclear RNAs snR7L and snR7S, which are also known to be required for splicing and which are present in spliceosomal complexes. RNA8 is also involved in an ATP-dependent association with two other small nuclear RNAs, snR14 and snR6. It is proposed that this represents an ATP-dependent interaction between small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particles that precedes their entry into the spliceosome.

The yeast RNA gene products are essential for mRNA splicing in vitro

The yeast rna mutations (rna2-rna11) are a set of temperature-sensitive mutations that result in the accumulation of intron-containing mRNA precursors at the restrictive temperature. We have used the yeast in vitro splicing system to investigate the role of products of the RNA genes in mRNA splicing. We have tested the heat lability of the in vitro mRNA splicing reaction in extracts isolated from mutant and wild-type cells. Extracts isolated from seven of the nine rna mutants demonstrated heat lability in this assay, while most wild-type extracts were stable under the conditions utilized. We have also demonstrated that heat inactivation usually results in the specific loss of an exchangeable component by showing that most combinations of heat-inactivated extracts from different mutants complement one another. In three cases (rna2, rna5, and rna11), the linkage of the in vitro defect to the rna mutations was ascertained by a combination of reversion, tetrad, and in vitro complementation analyses. Furthermore, each heat-inactivated extract was capable of complementation by at least one fraction of the wild-type splicing system. Thus many of the RNA genes are likely to code for products directly involved in and essential for mRNA splicing.