Chu E, Allegra C J
NCI-Navy Medical Oncology Branch, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20889-5105, USA.
Bioessays. 1996 Mar;18(3):191-8. doi: 10.1002/bies.950180306.
Thymidylate synthase plays a central role in the biosynthesis of thymidylate, an essential precursor for DNA biosynthesis. In addition to its role in catalysis and cellular metabolism, it is now appreciated that thymidylate synthase functions as an RNA binding protein. Specifically, thymidylate synthase binds with high affinity to its own mRNA, resulting in translational repression. An extensive series of experiments has been performed to elucidate the molecular elements underlying the interaction between thymidylate synthase and its own mRNA. In addition to characterization of the underlying cis- and trans-acting elements, recent studies have shown that thymidylate synthase has the capacity to bind specifically to other cellular RNA species. While the biological significance of these other RNA/thymidylate synthase interactions remains to be defined, this work suggests a potential role for TS in coordinately regulating several critical aspects of cellular metabolism.
胸苷酸合成酶在胸苷酸的生物合成中起着核心作用，胸苷酸是DNA生物合成的必需前体。除了其在催化和细胞代谢中的作用外，现在人们认识到胸苷酸合成酶还作为一种RNA结合蛋白发挥作用。具体而言，胸苷酸合成酶以高亲和力与其自身的mRNA结合，导致翻译抑制。已经进行了一系列广泛的实验来阐明胸苷酸合成酶与其自身mRNA相互作用的分子机制。除了对潜在的顺式和反式作用元件进行表征外，最近的研究表明胸苷酸合成酶具有特异性结合其他细胞RNA种类的能力。虽然这些其他RNA/胸苷酸合成酶相互作用的生物学意义尚待确定，但这项工作表明胸苷酸合成酶在协调调节细胞代谢的几个关键方面可能发挥作用。
