Computational modeling analyses of RNA secondary structures and phylogenetic inference of evolutionary conserved 5S rRNA in the prokaryotes.

Bacteria are unicellular, ubiquitous microorganisms which grow on soil, acidic hot springs, radioactive wastes, etc. The genome of bacteria constitutes species specific conserved region. The 5S rRNA is one of the most conserved region determined in each bacteria and the size ranges between 110 and 148 bp. On this basis phylogenetic study of 37 bacterial strains was done which results in formation of seven clades and furthermore RNA secondary structure from each clade was made. The lowest free energy (delta G) of the 5S rRNA may divulge the most primitive bacteria and slow changes occurs throughout the evolution whereas the higher free energy indicates less stability during the evolution. The RNA secondary structure may provide new insights to understand bacteria evolution and stability.