The multitasking polyA tail: nuclear RNA maturation, degradation and export

Agnieszka Tudek, Marta Lloret-Llinares, Torben Heick Jensen

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40 Citations (Scopus)
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Abstract

A polyA (pA) tail is an essential modification added to the 30 ends of a wide range of RNAs at different stages of their metabolism. Here, we describe the main sources of polyadenylation and outline their underlying biochemical interactions within the nuclei of budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, human cells and, when relevant, the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Polyadenylation mediated by the S. Cerevisiae Trf4/5 enzymes, and their human homologues PAPD5/7, typically leads to the 30-end trimming or complete decay of non-coding RNAs. By contrast, the primary function of canonical pA polymerases (PAPs) is to produce stable and nuclear export-competent mRNAs. However, this dichotomy is becoming increasingly blurred, at least in S. Pombe and human cells, where polyadenylation mediated by canonical PAPs may also result in transcript decay. This article is part of the theme issue '50 and 30 modifications controlling RNA degradation'.

Original languageEnglish
Article number20180169
JournalPhilosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Volume373
Issue1762
Number of pages13
ISSN0962-8436
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 19 Dec 2018

Keywords

  • PolyA binding proteins
  • RNA decay
  • RNA export
  • RNA polyadenylation
  • TRAMP complex
  • Transcription termination

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