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RNA May 'Run' Genetic Coding

Posted by Zonk on from the new-boss-same-as-the-old-boss dept.

leonbrooks writes "First a Stanford Medicine Magazine article speaks about RNA 'produced by plants that turn genes on and off', and now a Science Magazine issue says 'For a long time, RNA has lived in the shadow of its more famous chemical cousin DNA and of the proteins that supposedly took over RNA's functions in the transition from the 'RNA world' to the modern one. The shadow cast has been so deep that a whole universe [of RNA] has remained hidden from view, until recently' and speaks of 'an order of magnitude more transcripts than genes', suggesting that more actual coding is done through RNA than DNA. Is everything we know about genetics off-base? (no pun intended)"

3 of 168 comments (clear)

  1. I suspect so but didnt know for sure by taj · · Score: 4, Interesting



    RNA is the hardest to work with in the laboratory. It just fall to pieces. When I was working with DNA/RNA/protien it was just really hard to work with RNA.

    so DNA->RNA->Protein

    We could work with DNA we could work with most protiens. RNA? no way. well sortof but.. no way.

    So DNA and Protein do play major rolls no doubt. but we could not get an angle on the RNA. 1990's tech.

    1. Re:I suspect so but didnt know for sure by TCQuad · · Score: 3, Interesting

      RNA breaks down without RNase. Physically, RNA is much less stable than DNA purely becuase it is not double stranded (in most cases).

      Actually, the 2'-hydroxyl (the difference between deoxyribonucleic acid and ribonucleic acid) is a more significant problem. DNA is not hydrolyzable because it lacks any remaining hyroxyl groups (they're busy making the backbone bonds between the bases), while the sugar backbone in RNA can be hydrolyzed by base (base like NaOH, not like A, C, G, T, U...), cutting the single RNA into two pieces.

  2. Re:mRNA is fascinating stuff... by RyanFenton · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Nah - iRNA is a subset of mRNA (see your link), which is all a subset of RNA. mRNA is so fascinating to me because of the ranges of messages that can be sent, and what all those interactions really mean. So far it seems that various kinds of mRNA, not just iRNA can be used ultimately to manipulate DNA on and off to help us see what the whole of DNA ultimately can functionally mean.

    Again, I'm just a layman on the issues - and find it deeply fascinating in terms of the pure science of it.

    Ryan Fenton