Articles tagged with Introns
Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have discovered a novel mechanism called recursive splicing, which removes long introns by steadily paring them down in a predictable fashion and joining the remaining exons. This process has been conserved over tens of millions of years of insect evolution and is likely to occur in humans.
The study found that deleting yeast gene ISY1 increases splicing reaction efficiency and improves 3'-splice site accuracy. The researchers believe Isy1 regulates spliceosomal conformation to ensure accurate pre-mRNA splicing.
Scientists at Purdue University have made a breakthrough in understanding the molecular mechanism of Group I introns, which could lead to new treatments for human diseases. By crystallizing an intron at mid-point in its work cycle, researchers gained insights into how it binds with molecules and carries out biochemical reactions.
The study analyzed data for 10 families of protein-coding genes in multi-celled organisms, resolving a debate over the timing of intron emergence. It found that most modern introns appeared subsequent to gene creation, contradicting the 'introns-early' view.
Myuanan Long, a University of Chicago researcher, has received the David and Lucile Packard Fellowship to study gene evolution. He believes that new genes arise through shuffling and mixing of existing genes or gene fragments, with 'junk' DNA playing a crucial role in this process.
Researchers at Ohio State University discovered that introns can move and insert themselves into genes at specific sites, allowing more control over genetic information transfer. This finding has significant implications for genetic therapy and provides insight into the evolution of early organisms.