ribozyme

(noun)

A fragment of RNA that can act as an enzyme.

Related Terms

  • plasmid
  • phospholipid

Examples of ribozyme in the following topics:

  • Elements of Life

    • The polymerization of nucleotides into random RNA molecules might have resulted in self-replicating ribozymes (RNA world hypothesis).
    • Selection pressures for catalytic efficiency and diversity might have resulted in ribozymes which catalyse peptidyl transfer (hence formation of small proteins), since oligopeptides complex with RNA to form better catalysts.
    • Synthesized proteins might then out-compete ribozymes in catalytic ability, therefore becoming the dominant biopolymer, relegating nucleic acids to their modern use as a carrier of genomic information.
  • Viroids

    • Some viroids are ribozymes, having catalytic properties which allow self-cleavage and ligation of unit-size genomes from larger replication intermediates.
    • The negative RNA strands are then cleaved by ribozyme activity and circularizes.
    • A second rolling circle mechanism forms a positive strand which is also cleaved by ribozyme activity and then ligated to become circular.
  • Riboswitches

    • The ability to function as a ribozyme and cleave itself if a sufficient concentration of its metabolite is present
  • Mammalian Gene Expression in Bacteria

    • This is normally a protein, although may also be RNA, such as tRNA or a ribozyme.
  • Cofactors and Energy Transitions

    • This common structure may reflect a common evolutionary origin as part of ribozymes in an ancient RNA world.
  • Amino Acid Synthesis

    • The process of making proteins is called translation and involves the step-by-step addition of amino acids to a growing protein chain by a ribozyme that is called a ribosome.
  • Enzymes Used in Industry

    • A few RNA molecules called ribozymes also catalyze reactions, with an important example being some parts of the ribosome.
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