RNA_Processing

What is RNA processing and why is it important for eukaryotic cells?

RNA processing is required to convert pre-mRNA into mature mRNA for translation, involving adding a 5' cap, splicing out introns, and adding a poly A tail.

What happens during transcription in prokaryotes?

RNA polymerase binds to the promoter, transcribes mRNA from the template strand, producing a molecule that can be directly translated into a protein without processing.

What are the three major steps of RNA processing in eukaryotes?

1. Addition of a 5' cap 2. Splicing to remove introns and connect exons 3. Addition of a poly A tail at the 3' end.

Why is RNA processing not required in prokaryotes?

Prokaryotic genes lack introns and transcription and translation occur simultaneously in the cytoplasm.

What role does the 5' methylated guanine cap play in mRNA?

It protects mRNA from degradation by exonucleases and assists in ribosome binding for translation.

What is polyadenylation?

The process of adding 80 to 250 adenine nucleotides to the 3' end of mRNA, facilitating stability and export from the nucleus.

What are cis regulatory elements and their function?

RNA sequences in the 3' UTR that are bound by proteins, influencing translation regulation and mRNA localization.

Describe the role of the spliceosome in RNA processing.

The spliceosome, made of snRNPs, recognizes splice sites, removes introns, and ligates exons together during RNA splicing.

What is alternative splicing?

A process where different splice sites are used to produce multiple mature mRNA variants from a single gene, leading to different proteins.

What are snRNPs and their function in splicing?

Small nuclear ribonucleoproteins (snRNPs) are components of the spliceosome that help identify splice sites and catalyze the splicing reaction.