The RNA-splicing endonuclease from the euryarchaeaon Methanopyrus kandleri is a heterotetramer with constrained substrate specificity

New insights into RNA processing by the eukaryotic tRNA splicing endonuclease

Through its role in intron cleavage, tRNA splicing endonuclease (TSEN) plays a critical function in the maturation of intron-containing pre-tRNAs. The catalytic mechanism and core requirement for this process is conserved between archaea and eukaryotes, but for decades, it has been known that eukaryotic TSENs have evolved additional modes of RNA recognition, which have remained poorly understood. Recent research identified new roles for eukaryotic TSEN, including processing or degradation of additional RNA substrates, and determined the first structures of pre-tRNA-bound human TSEN complexes. These recent discoveries have changed our understanding of how the eukaryotic TSEN targets and recognizes substrates. Here, we review these recent discoveries, their implications, and the new questions raised by these findings.

The life and times of a tRNA

The study of eukaryotic tRNA processing has given rise to an explosion of new information and insights in the last several years. We now have unprecedented knowledge of each step in the tRNA processing pathway, revealing unexpected twists in biochemical pathways, multiple new connections with regulatory pathways, and numerous biological effects of defects in processing steps that have profound consequences throughout eukaryotes, leading to growth phenotypes in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and to neurological and other disorders in humans. This review highlights seminal new results within the pathways that comprise the life of a tRNA, from its birth after transcription until its death by decay. We focus on new findings and revelations in each step of the pathway including the end-processing and splicing steps, many of the numerous modifications throughout the main body and anticodon loop of tRNA that are so crucial for tRNA function, the intricate tRNA trafficking pathways, and the quality control decay pathways, as well as the biogenesis and biology of tRNA-derived fragments. We also describe the many interactions of these pathways with signaling and other pathways in the cell.

Recent insights into the structure, function, and regulation of the eukaryotic transfer RNA splicing endonuclease complex

The splicing of transfer RNA (tRNA) introns is a critical step of tRNA maturation, for intron-containing tRNAs. In eukaryotes, tRNA splicing is a multi-step process that relies on several RNA processing enzymes to facilitate intron removal and exon ligation. Splicing is initiated by the tRNA splicing endonuclease (TSEN) complex which catalyzes the excision of the intron through its two nuclease subunits. Mutations in all four subunits of the TSEN complex are linked to a family of neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental diseases known as pontocerebellar hypoplasia (PCH). Recent studies provide molecular insights into the structure, function, and regulation of the eukaryotic TSEN complex and are beginning to illuminate how mutations in the TSEN complex lead to neurodegenerative disease. Using new advancements in the prediction of protein structure, we created a three-dimensional model of the human TSEN complex. We review functions of the TSEN complex beyond tRNA splicing by highlighting recently identified substrates of the eukaryotic TSEN complex and discuss mechanisms for the regulation of tRNA splicing, by enzymes that modify cleaved tRNA exons and introns. Finally, we review recent biochemical and animal models that have worked to address the mechanisms that drive PCH and synthesize these studies with previous studies to try to better understand PCH pathogenesis. This article is categorized under: RNA Processing > tRNA Processing RNA in Disease and Development > RNA in Disease RNA Interactions with Proteins and Other Molecules > Protein-RNA Recognition.

Comprehensive analysis of the pre-ribosomal RNA maturation pathway in a methanoarchaeon exposes the conserved circularization and linearization mode in archaea

The ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes are generally organized as an operon and cotranscribed into a polycistronic precursor; therefore, processing and maturation of pre-rRNAs are essential for ribosome biogenesis. However, rRNA maturation pathways of archaea, particularly of methanoarchaea, are scarcely known. Here, we thoroughly elucidated the maturation pathway of the rRNA operon (16S-tRNA^Ala-23S-tRNA^Cys-5S) in Methanolobus psychrophilus, one representative of methanoarchaea. Enzymatic assay demonstrated that EndA, a tRNA splicing endoribonuclease, cleaved bulge-helix-bulge (BHB) motifs buried in the processing stems of pre-16S and pre-23S rRNAs. Northern blot and quantitative PCR detected splicing-coupled circularization of pre-16S and pre-23S rRNAs, which accounted for 2% and 12% of the corresponding rRNAs, respectively. Importantly, endoribonuclease Nob1 was determined to linearize circular pre-16S rRNA at the mature 3' end so to expose the anti-Shine-Dalgarno sequence, while circular pre-23S rRNA was linearized at the mature 5' end by an unknown endoribonuclease. The resultant 5' and 3' extension in linearized pre-16S and pre-23S rRNAs were finally matured through 5'-3' and 3'-5' exoribonucleolytic trimming, respectively. Additionally, a novel processing pathway of endoribonucleolysis coupled with exoribonucleolysis was identified for the pre-5S rRNA maturation in this methanogen, which could be also conserved in most methanogenic euryarchaea. Based on evaluating the phylogenetic conservation of the key elements that are involved in circularization and linearization of pre-rRNA maturation, we predict that the rRNA maturation mode revealed here could be prevalent among archaea.

Root of the Tree: The Significance, Evolution, and Origins of the Ribosome

The ribosome is an ancient molecular fossil that provides a telescope to the origins of life. Made from RNA and protein, the ribosome translates mRNA to coded protein in all living systems. Universality, economy, centrality and antiquity are ingrained in translation. The translation machinery dominates the set of genes that are shared as orthologues across the tree of life. The lineage of the translation system defines the universal tree of life. The function of a ribosome is to build ribosomes; to accomplish this task, ribosomes make ribosomal proteins, polymerases, enzymes, and signaling proteins. Every coded protein ever produced by life on Earth has passed through the exit tunnel, which is the birth canal of biology. During the root phase of the tree of life, before the last common ancestor of life (LUCA), exit tunnel evolution is dominant and unremitting. Protein folding coevolved with evolution of the exit tunnel. The ribosome shows that protein folding initiated with intrinsic disorder, supported through a short, primitive exit tunnel. Folding progressed to thermodynamically stable β-structures and then to kinetically trapped α-structures. The latter were enabled by a long, mature exit tunnel that partially offset the general thermodynamic tendency of all polypeptides to form β-sheets. RNA chaperoned the evolution of protein folding from the very beginning. The universal common core of the ribosome, with a mass of nearly 2 million Daltons, was finalized by LUCA. The ribosome entered stasis after LUCA and remained in that state for billions of years. Bacterial ribosomes never left stasis. Archaeal ribosomes have remained near stasis, except for the superphylum Asgard, which has accreted rRNA post LUCA. Eukaryotic ribosomes in some lineages appear to be logarithmically accreting rRNA over the last billion years. Ribosomal expansion in Asgard and Eukarya has been incremental and iterative, without substantial remodeling of pre-existing basal structures. The ribosome preserves information on its history.

Recent Insights Into the Structure, Function, and Evolution of the RNA-Splicing Endonucleases

RNA-splicing endonuclease (EndA) cleaves out introns from archaeal and eukaryotic precursor (pre)-tRNA and is essential for tRNA maturation. In archaeal EndA, the molecular mechanisms underlying complex assembly, substrate recognition, and catalysis have been well understood. Recently, certain studies have reported novel findings including the identification of new subunit types in archaeal EndA structures, providing insights into the mechanism underlying broad substrate specificity. Further, metagenomics analyses have enabled the acquisition of numerous DNA sequences of EndAs and intron-containing pre-tRNAs from various species, providing information regarding the co-evolution of substrate specificity of archaeal EndAs and tRNA genetic diversity, and the evolutionary pathway of archaeal and eukaryotic EndAs. Although the complex structure of the heterothermic form of eukaryotic EndAs is unknown, previous reports regarding their functions indicated that mutations in human EndA cause neurological disorders including pontocerebellar hypoplasia and progressive microcephaly, and yeast EndA significantly cleaves mitochondria-localized mRNA encoding cytochrome b mRNA processing 1 (Cpb1) for mRNA maturation. This mini-review summarizes the aforementioned results, discusses their implications, and offers my personal opinion regarding future directions for the analysis of the structure and function of EndAs.