You Mingxu, Jaffrey Samie R
Department of Pharmacology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York.
Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2015 Sep;1352(1):13-9. doi: 10.1111/nyas.12660. Epub 2015 Mar 10.
Light-responsive proteins have been used in the field of optogenetics to control cellular functions. However, surprisingly, analogous approaches to regulate and alter the functions of RNA molecules by light remain underdeveloped. RNA aptamers and RNA devices can perform diverse intracellular functions and are important tools in synthetic biology. This report explores the challenges of and potential strategies for engineering light regulation into functional RNAs in cells. We discuss approaches for using existing light-regulated proteins and small molecules to control RNA function in living cells. In addition, applications of light-regulated RNAs for synthetic biology and for studying functions of endogenously expressed RNAs are discussed.
光响应蛋白已被应用于光遗传学领域以控制细胞功能。然而，令人惊讶的是，通过光来调节和改变RNA分子功能的类似方法仍未得到充分发展。RNA适配体和RNA装置可以执行多种细胞内功能，并且是合成生物学中的重要工具。本报告探讨了在细胞中对功能性RNA进行光调控工程的挑战和潜在策略。我们讨论了利用现有的光调控蛋白和小分子来控制活细胞中RNA功能的方法。此外，还讨论了光调控RNA在合成生物学以及研究内源性表达RNA功能方面的应用。
