Combined smFRET and NMR analysis of riboswitch structural dynamics

Deciphering ligand and metal ion dependent intricate folding landscape of Vc2 c-di-GMP riboswitch aptamer

Riboswitches are RNAs that recognize ligands and regulate gene expression. They are typically located in the untranslated region of bacterial messenger RNA and consist of an aptamer and an expression platform. In this study, we examine the folding pathway of the Vc2 (Vibrio cholerae) riboswitch aptamer domain, which targets the bacterial secondary messenger cyclic-di-GMP. We demonstrated by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and isothermal titration calorimetry that the stable folding of the Vc2 riboswitch requires an adequate supply of Mg2+, Na+ and K+ ions. We found that Mg2+ has a crucial role in the pre-folding of the aptamer, while K+ is essential for establishing the long-range G-C interactions and stabilizing the ligand binding pocket. Precise imino proton assignments revealed the progressive folding of the aptamer. The results indicate that the P2 helix consists of weaker and more dynamic base pairs compared to the P1b helix, allowing the rearrangement of the base pairs in the P2 helix during the folding process required for effective ligand recognition. This study provides a profound understanding riboswitch architecture and dynamics at the atomic level under physiological conditions as well as structural information on apo-state RNA.

The Plethora of RNA-Protein Interactions Model a Basis for RNA Therapies

The notion of RNA-based therapeutics has gained wide attractions in both academic and commercial institutions. RNA is a polymer of nucleic acids that has been proven to be impressively versatile, dating to its hypothesized RNA World origins, evidenced by its enzymatic roles in facilitating DNA replication, mRNA decay, and protein synthesis. This is underscored through the activities of riboswitches, spliceosomes, ribosomes, and telomerases. Given its broad range of interactions within the cell, RNA can be targeted by a therapeutic or modified as a pharmacologic scaffold for diseases such as nucleotide repeat disorders, infectious diseases, and cancer. RNA therapeutic techniques that have been researched include, but are not limited to, CRISPR/Cas gene editing, anti-sense oligonucleotides (ASOs), siRNA, small molecule treatments, and RNA aptamers. The knowledge gleaned from studying RNA-centric mechanisms will inevitably improve the design of RNA-based therapeutics. Building on this understanding, we explore the physiological diversity of RNA functions, examine specific dysfunctions, such as splicing errors and viral interactions, and discuss their therapeutic implications.

Biophysical Investigation of RNA ⋅ DNA : DNA Triple Helix and RNA : DNA Heteroduplex Formation by the lncRNAs MEG3 and Fendrr

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are important regulators of gene expression and can associate with DNA as RNA : DNA heteroduplexes or RNA ⋅ DNA : DNA triple helix structures. Here, we review in vitro biochemical and biophysical experiments including electromobility shift assays (EMSA), circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy, thermal melting analysis, microscale thermophoresis (MST), single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer (smFRET) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to investigate RNA ⋅ DNA : DNA triple helix and RNA : DNA heteroduplex formation. We present the investigations of the antiparallel triplex-forming lncRNA MEG3 targeting the gene TGFB2 and the parallel triplex-forming lncRNA Fendrr with its target gene Emp2. The thermodynamic properties of these oligonucleotides lead to concentration-dependent heterogeneous mixtures, where a DNA duplex, an RNA : DNA heteroduplex and an RNA ⋅ DNA : DNA triplex coexist and their relative populations are modulated in a temperature-dependent manner. The in vitro data provide a reliable readout of triplex structures, as RNA ⋅ DNA : DNA triplexes show distinct features compared to DNA duplexes and RNA : DNA heteroduplexes. Our experimental results can be used to validate computationally predicted triple helix formation between novel disease-relevant lncRNAs and their DNA target genes.

Allosteric activation of RhlB by RNase E induces partial duplex opening in substrate RNA

The E. coli DEAD-Box helicase RhlB is responsible for ATP-dependent unwinding of structured mRNA to facilitate RNA degradation by the protein complex degradosome. The allosteric interaction with complex partner RNase E is necessary to stimulate both, RhlB's ATPase and RNA unwinding activity to levels comparable with other DEAD-Box helicases. However, the structural changes of the helicase RhlB induced by binding of RNase E have not been characterized and how those lead to increased reaction rates has remained unclear. We investigated the origin of this activation for RNA substrates with different topologies. Using NMR spectroscopy and an RNA centered approach, we could show that RNase E binding increases the affinity of RhlB towards a subset of RNA substrates, which leads to increased ATP turnover rates. Most strikingly, our studies revealed that in presence of RNase E (694-790) RhlB induces a conformational change in an RNA duplex with 5'- overhang even in absence of ATP, leading to partial duplex opening. Those results indicate a unique and novel activation mode of RhlB among DEAD-Box helicases, as ATP binding is thought to be an essential prerequisite for RNA unwinding.

Binding of 30S Ribosome Induces Single-stranded Conformation Within and Downstream of the Expression Platform in a Translational Riboswitch

Translational riboswitches are bacterial gene regulatory elements found in the 5'-untranslated region of mRNAs. They operate through a conformational refolding reaction that is triggered by a concentration change of a modulating small molecular ligand. The translation initiation region (TIR) is either released from or incorporated into base pairing interactions through the conformational switch. Hence, initiation of translation is regulated by the accessibility of the Shine-Dalgarno sequence and start codon. Interaction with the 30S ribosome is indispensable for the structural switch between functional OFF and ON states. However, on a molecular level it is still not fully resolved how the ribosome is accommodated near or at the translation initiation region in the context of translational riboswitches. The standby model of translation initiation postulates a binding site where the mRNA enters the ribosome and where it resides until the initiation site becomes unstructured and accessible. We here investigated the adenine-sensing riboswitch from Vibrio vulnificus. By application of a ¹⁹F labelling strategy for NMR spectroscopy that utilizes ligation techniques to synthesize differentially ¹⁹F labelled riboswitch molecules we show that nucleotides directly downstream of the riboswitch domain are first involved in productive interaction with the 30S ribosomal subunit. Upon the concerted action of ligand and the ribosomal protein rS1 the TIR becomes available and subsequently the 30S ribosome can slide towards the TIR. It will be interesting to see whether this is a general feature in translational riboswitches or if riboswitches exist where this region is structured and represent yet another layer of regulation.

NMR assignment of non-modified tRNAIle from Escherichia coli

tRNAs are L-shaped RNA molecules of ~ 80 nucleotides that are responsible for decoding the mRNA and for the incorporation of the correct amino acid into the growing peptidyl-chain at the ribosome. They occur in all kingdoms of life and both their functions, and their structure are highly conserved. The L-shaped tertiary structure is based on a cloverleaf-like secondary structure that consists of four base paired stems connected by three to four loops. The anticodon base triplet, which is complementary to the sequence of the mRNA, resides in the anticodon loop whereas the amino acid is attached to the sequence CCA at the 3'-terminus of the molecule. tRNAs exhibit very stable secondary and tertiary structures and contain up to 10% modified nucleotides. However, their structure and function can also be maintained in the absence of nucleotide modifications. Here, we present the assignments of nucleobase resonances of the non-modified 77 nt tRNA^Ile from the gram-negative bacterium Escherichia coli. We obtained assignments for all imino resonances visible in the spectra of the tRNA as well as for additional exchangeable and non-exchangeable protons and for heteronuclei of the nucleobases. Based on these assignments we could determine the chemical shift differences between modified and non-modified tRNA^Ile as a first step towards the analysis of the effect of nucleotide modifications on tRNA's structure and dynamics.

RNA modifications stabilize the tertiary structure of tRNAfMet by locally increasing conformational dynamics

A plethora of modified nucleotides extends the chemical and conformational space for natural occurring RNAs. tRNAs constitute the class of RNAs with the highest modification rate. The extensive modification modulates their overall stability, the fidelity and efficiency of translation. However, the impact of nucleotide modifications on the local structural dynamics is not well characterized. Here we show that the incorporation of the modified nucleotides in tRNAfMet from Escherichia coli leads to an increase in the local conformational dynamics, ultimately resulting in the stabilization of the overall tertiary structure. Through analysis of the local dynamics by NMR spectroscopic methods we find that, although the overall thermal stability of the tRNA is higher for the modified molecule, the conformational fluctuations on the local level are increased in comparison to an unmodified tRNA. In consequence, the melting of individual base pairs in the unmodified tRNA is determined by high entropic penalties compared to the modified. Further, we find that the modifications lead to a stabilization of long-range interactions harmonizing the stability of the tRNA's secondary and tertiary structure. Our results demonstrate that the increase in chemical space through introduction of modifications enables the population of otherwise inaccessible conformational substates.

Characterization of Structure and Dynamics of the Guanidine-II Riboswitch from Escherichia coli by NMR Spectroscopy and Small-Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS)

Riboswitches are regulatory RNA elements that undergo functionally important allosteric conformational switching upon binding of specific ligands. The here investigated guanidine-II riboswitch binds the small cation, guanidinium, and forms a kissing loop-loop interaction between its P1 and P2 hairpins. We investigated the structural changes to support previous studies regarding the binding mechanism. Using NMR spectroscopy, we confirmed the structure as observed in crystal structures and we characterized the kissing loop interaction upon addition of Mg2+ and ligand for the riboswitch aptamer from Escherichia coli. We further investigated closely related mutant constructs providing further insight into functional differences between the two (different) hairpins P1 and P2. Formation of intermolecular interactions were probed by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and NMR DOSY data. All data are consistent and show the formation of oligomeric states of the riboswitch induced by Mg2+ and ligand binding.

Switching at the ribosome: riboswitches need rProteins as modulators to regulate translation

Translational riboswitches are cis-acting RNA regulators that modulate the expression of genes during translation initiation. Their mechanism is considered as an RNA-only gene-regulatory system inducing a ligand-dependent shift of the population of functional ON- and OFF-states. The interaction of riboswitches with the translation machinery remained unexplored. For the adenine-sensing riboswitch from Vibrio vulnificus we show that ligand binding alone is not sufficient for switching to a translational ON-state but the interaction of the riboswitch with the 30S ribosome is indispensable. Only the synergy of binding of adenine and of 30S ribosome, in particular protein rS1, induces complete opening of the translation initiation region. Our investigation thus unravels the intricate dynamic network involving RNA regulator, ligand inducer and ribosome protein modulator during translation initiation.

Translational regulation by riboswitches is an important mechanism for the modulation of gene expression in bacteria. Here the authors show that the ligand-induced allosteric switch in the adenine-sensing riboswitch from V. vulnificus is insufficient and leads only to a partial opening of the ribosome binding site and requires interaction with 30S-bound ribosomal protein S1, which acts as an RNA chaperone.

19 F NMR-Based Fragment Screening for 14 Different Biologically Active RNAs and 10 DNA and Protein Counter-Screens

We report here the nuclear magnetic resonance 19 F screening of 14 RNA targets with different secondary and tertiary structure to systematically assess the druggability of RNAs. Our RNA targets include representative bacterial riboswitches that naturally bind with nanomolar affinity and high specificity to cellular metabolites of low molecular weight. Based on counter-screens against five DNAs and five proteins, we can show that RNA can be specifically targeted. To demonstrate the quality of the initial fragment library that has been designed for easy follow-up chemistry, we further show how to increase binding affinity from an initial fragment hit by chemistry that links the identified fragment to the intercalator acridine. Thus, we achieve low-micromolar binding affinity without losing binding specificity between two different terminator structures.