We have developed conditional gene expression systems based on engineered small-molecule-binding riboswitches. Tetracycline-dependent regulation can be imposed on an mRNA in yeast by inserting an aptamer in its 5′-untranslated region. Biochemical and genetic analyses determined that binding of the ligand tetracycline leads to a pseudoknot-like linkage within the aptamer structure, thereby inhibiting the initial steps of translation. A second translational control element was designed by combining a theophylline aptamer with a communication module for which a 1 nt slipping mechanism had been proposed. This structural element was inserted close to the bacterial ribosomal binding site at a position just interfering with translation in the non-ligand-bound form. Addition of the ligand then shifts the inhibitory element to a distance that permits efficient translation.
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June 2005
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Conference Article|
June 01 2005
Engineered riboswitches control gene expression by small molecules
B. Suess
B. Suess
1
1Lehrstuhl für Mikrobiologie, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Staudtstr. 5, D-91058 Erlangen, Germany
1 email bsuess@biologie.uni-erlangen.de
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Biochem Soc Trans (2005) 33 (3): 474–476.
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Received:
January 14 2005
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B. Suess; Engineered riboswitches control gene expression by small molecules. Biochem Soc Trans 1 June 2005; 33 (3): 474–476. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/BST0330474
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