PSEUDOKNOTS IN HUMAN SNRNPS

Snurps or small nuclear ribonucleoproteins (snRNPs), are RNA-protein complexes that combine withunmodified pre-mRNA and various other proteins to form a Spliceosome, comprising of five small nuclear RNAs(snRNAs)—U1, U2, U4, U5, and U6 snRNA—as well as many protein factors, upon which splicing of pre-mRNAoccurs. While, RNA pseudoknots play crucial role in protein synthesis by helping in internal ribosome entry,frameshifting, stop codon readthrough in many viral species and the 3’NCR pseudoknots helps viral RNAs to replicate,has been reported by a number of investigators, its presence in human snurps has not yet been done. The present insilico study reveals the presence of pseudoknots in the mRNAs of the proteins associated with human Spliceosome. Itnot only emphasizes their significance as catalytic RNA world relics but also opens the scope of research in thefunctional and structural associations of RNA pseudoknots in eukaryotic gene regulation.