PrfA thermoregulator UTR
Predicted secondary structure and sequence conservation of PrfA
Identifiers
SymbolPrfA
RfamRF00038
Other data
RNA typeCis-reg; thermoregulator
Domain(s)Bacteria
SOSO:0000233
PDB structuresPDBe

The PrfA thermoregulator UTR is an RNA thermometer found in the 5' UTR of the prfA gene.[1] In Listeria monocytogenes, virulence genes are maximally expressed at 37 °C (human body temperature) but are almost silent at 30 °C.[2] The genes are controlled by PrfA, a transcriptional activator whose expression is thermoregulated.[3] It has been shown that the untranslated mRNA (UTR) preceding prfA, forms a secondary structure, which masks the ribosome binding region.[1] It is thought that at 37 °C, the hairpin structure 'melts' and the SD sequence is unmasked.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c Johansson J, Mandin P, Renzoni A, Chiaruttini C, Springer M, Cossart P (2002). "An RNA thermosensor controls expression of virulence genes in Listeria monocytogenes". Cell. 110 (5): 551–561. doi:10.1016/S0092-8674(02)00905-4. PMID 12230973.
  2. ^ Freitag, NE; Port, GC; Miner, MD (September 2009). "Listeria monocytogenes - from saprophyte to intracellular pathogen". Nature Reviews. Microbiology. 7 (9): 623–628. doi:10.1038/nrmicro2171. PMC 2813567. PMID 19648949.
  3. ^ Digel, I; Kayser, P; Artmann, GM (2008). "Molecular processes in biological thermosensation". Journal of Biophysics. 2008: 602870. doi:10.1155/2008/602870. PMC 2814129. PMID 20130806.

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