The RNA world hypothesis gains support from the in vitro evolution of a bifunctional ribozyme that can recognize an activated glutaminyl ester and subsequently aminoacylate a tRNA molecule.

A major focus of our lab is to harness the power of small catalytic RNAs (such as the hammerhead ribozyme) to create new RNA switches that can be turned on or off by small molecules. One of the ...

Interestingly, the structure of the L1 ligase ribozyme 14 demonstrates that RNA and protein enzymes use analogous strategies to catalyze phosphodiester bond formation and metal-ion coordination.

In a paper published today (August 15) in PNAS, scientists from the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, report on their use of in vitro evolution to generate an improved polymerase ...

A group of researchers led by Professor Claudia Höbartner at the University of Würburg (JMU) has now uncovered the three-dimensional structure of a very special ribozyme: SAMURI. This is an RNA ...

The team tested 15 different ribozyme combinations — molecular machines that can help build proteins — to see which amino acid orientations they might favor. Surprisingly, these RNA-like ...