Roßmanith Johanna, Narberhaus Franz
a Microbial Biology, Ruhr University Bochum , Bochum , Germany.
RNA Biol. 2017 Mar 4;14(3):287-292. doi: 10.1080/15476286.2016.1274853. Epub 2016 Dec 23.
Due to their simple architecture and control mechanism, regulatory RNA modules are attractive building blocks in synthetic biology. This is especially true for riboswitches, which are natural ligand-binding regulators of gene expression. The discovery of various tandem riboswitches inspired the design of combined RNA modules with activities not yet found in nature. Riboswitches were placed in tandem or in combination with a ribozyme or temperature-responsive RNA thermometer resulting in new functionalities. Here, we compare natural examples of tandem riboswitches with recently designed artificial RNA regulators suggesting substantial modularity of regulatory RNA elements. Challenges associated with modular RNA design are discussed.
由于其简单的结构和控制机制，调控RNA模块在合成生物学中是极具吸引力的构建模块。对于核糖开关而言尤其如此，核糖开关是基因表达的天然配体结合调控因子。各种串联核糖开关的发现激发了对具有自然界尚未发现活性的组合RNA模块的设计。核糖开关被串联放置，或与核酶或温度响应性RNA温度计组合，从而产生了新的功能。在这里，我们将串联核糖开关的天然实例与最近设计的人工RNA调控因子进行比较，表明调控RNA元件具有显著的模块化特性。文中还讨论了与模块化RNA设计相关的挑战。
