Structural basis for the coevolution of a viral RNA

Singer Lab Publications:

Abstract:

Structural basis for the coevolution of a viral RNA–protein complex.

Chao JA, Patskovsky Y, Almo SC, Singer RH

Nat Struct Mol Biol 15(1):103-105 (2008 January)

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The cocrystal structure of the PP7 bacteriophage coat protein in complex with its translational operator identifies a distinct mode of sequence-specific RNA recognition when compared to the well-characterized MS2 coat protein–RNA complex. The structure reveals the molecular basis of the PP7 coat protein's ability to selectively bind its cognate RNA, and it demonstrates that the conserved β-sheet surface is a flexible architecture that can evolve to recognize diverse RNA hairpins.