1995/06/01 by François Michel, Jean‐Luc Ferat · 5 citations
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #RNA and protein synthesis mechanisms #Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology #Photosynthetic Processes and Mechanisms
paper · doi:10.1146/annurev.bi.64.070195.002251
openalex publication_date 1995/06/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/15
Group II introns are found in eubacteria and eubacterial-derived, organellar genomes. They have ribozymic activities, by which they direct and catalyze the splicing of the exons flanking them. This chapter reviews the secondary structure and known tertiary interactions of the ribozymic component of group II introns in relation to the problems of specifying splice sites and building a catalytic core. We pay special attention to the relationship between the transesterification and hydrolytic modes of initiating splicing and the stereospecificities of these reactions. A number of group II introns encode proteins of the reverse transcriptase family; the activity of these proteins enables the host introns to change genomic locations by mechanisms that are only beginning to be deciphered. Finally, we briefly discuss multipartite and post-transcriptionally edited group II introns, together with the intron microcosm of Euglena gracilis chloroplasts and the possible relationships between group II and spliceosome-catalyzed splicing processes.