Base pairing between U2 and U6 snRNAs is necessary for splicing of a mammalian pre-mRNA.

Splicing of pre-messenger RNA in eukaryotic cells occurs in a multicomponent complex termed the spliceosome, which contains small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particles (snRNPs), protein factors and substrate pre-mRNA. Assembly of the spliceosome involves the stepwise binding of snRNPs and protein factors to the pre-mRNA through a poorly understood mechanism which probably involves specific RNA-RNA, RNA-protein and protein-protein interactions. Of particular interest are the interactions between snRNPs, which are likely to be important not only for assembly of the spliceosome but also for catalysis. U1 snRNP interacts with the 5' splice site and U2 snRNP with the branch site of the pre-mRNA; both of these interactions involve Watson-Crick base pairing. But very little is known about how other factors such as the U4/U6 and U5 snRNPs reach the spliceosome and function in splicing. Here we report evidence that U6 snRNA interacts directly with U2 snRNA by a mechanism involving base-pairing, and that this interaction can be necessary for splicing of a mammalian pre-mRNA in vivo.     

Heat-shock induced proteins present in the cell nucleus of Chironomus tentans salivary gland.

The heat shock (HS) system has been largely studied in Drosophila but the molecular mechanisms responsible for the induction of the heat shock genes as well as the function(s) and the intracellular localisation of the induced proteins is still unknown. It has previously been shown that the HS puff induction is accompanied by a local increase of nuclear nonhistone proteins (NHP) but the nature of most of the proteins accumulating is unknown. We have investigated the effects of a heat shock on Chironomus tentans salivary glands, a system where it is possible to study constituents in various subcellular or intranuclear regions including individual puffs, by microdissection. We report here evidence that at least two of the polypeptides synthesised in response to the heat shock migrate to the nucleus. Furthermore, these two proteins appear to have a broad intranuclear distribution, as shown by their presence in the various microdissected nuclear fractions.     

Pheromone binding to two rodent urinary proteins revealed by X-ray crystallography.

The principal protein excreted in male rat urine, urinary alpha 2-globulin and the homologous mouse protein, major urinary protein, have been well characterized, although their functions remain unclear. Male rat urine affects the behaviour and sexual response of female rats, leading to the proposal that rodent urinary proteins are responsible for binding pheromones and their subsequent release from drying urine. Urinary alpha 2-globulin is also involved in hyaline droplet nephropathy, an important toxicological syndrome in male rats resulting from exposure to a number of industrial chemicals and characterized by the accumulation of liganded urinary alpha 2-globulin in lysosomes in the kidney, followed by the induction of renal cancer. We now report the three-dimensional structures of mouse major urinary protein (at 2.4 A resolution) and rat urinary alpha 2-globulin (at 2.8 A resolution). The results corroborate the role of these proteins in pheromone transport and elaborate the structural basis of ligand binding.     

Clathrin light chains and secretory vesicle binding proteins are distinct

Recently, several groups have initiated studies on cytosolic proteins that bind to isolated secretory vesicle membranes in the presence of Ca2+ in order to identify proteins that may regulate exocytosis. Two major chromaffin granule binding proteins, of molecular weights 32,000 (32K) and 34,000 (34K), were reported to have the same mobility on one-dimensional SDS gels as clathrin-associated light chains from the adrenal medulla, and the 34K granule binding protein the same one-dimensional peptide map as the 34K clathrin light chain. These observations support the hypothesis that Ca2+-dependent recruitment of soluble light chains to the vesicle membrane may nucleate the assembly of a clathrin coat and initiate endocytosis. Here we report that two-dimensional peptide maps of the clathrin light chains and of all chromaffin granule membrane binding proteins in the 30K range are distinct, and therefore fail to support this hypothesis. It has also been suggested that some or all of the vesicle binding proteins require calmodulin for their interaction with the membrane. However, we find that antagonism of calmodulin by trifluoperazine does not prevent the association of the other cytosolic proteins with the chromaffin granule membrane.     

Breeding of T. aestivum-Ag. intermedium translocation lines with T. timopheevii cytoplasm and characterization by GISH

A male-sterileT. aestivum-Ag. intermedium partial amphiploid with cytoplasm ofT. timopheevii as a female parent was crossed to common wheat. The hybrid was backcrossed to the male parent several times continually and setf-crossed at last. Two stable lines with common wheat phenotype, H96269-2 and H96278, have been obtained. The chromosome numbers of the two lines are all2n = 42 in somatic cetls. By inoculation test, the two lines show a high levet of resistance to yetlow rust. Through genomicin situ hybridization (GISH) withAg. intermedium total genomic DNA as a probe, it is demonstrated that the two stable lines are all small segmental translocation lines, and the translocated chromosome segments fromAg. intermedium are located on the short arm terminals of wheat chromosomes. Genetics analysis suggests that the yetlow rust resistance gene(s) are probably located on the translocated chromosome segments ofAg. intermedium.     

Identification of specific binding proteins for a nuclear location sequence

The nuclear envelope is a selective barrier against the movement of macromolecules between the nucleus and cytoplasm. Nuclear proteins larger than relative molecular mass 20,000-40,000 are probably actively transported across the envelope through the nuclear pore complex and are directed by specific nuclear location sequences (NLS) in the proteins. NLS mediate the nuclear import of isolated nuclear proteins after microinjection into whole cells and the nuclear accumulation of chimaeric proteins or of non-nuclear proteins conjugated to synthetic peptides. The best-characterized NLS is the simian virus 40 large T-antigen sequence. We have identified two proteins of rat liver by chemical cross-linking that interact with a synthetic peptide containing this sequence: this interaction is specific for a functional NLS, is saturable, and high affinity. The binding proteins are present in a post-mitochondrial supernatant, in nuclei and in a nuclear envelope fraction, which is consistent with a role in the transport of nuclear proteins from the cytoplasm to the nucleus.