Biochemical study of a splicing factor Sde2

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K18490
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Molecular biology
• Research Institution: Kobe University
• Principal Investigator: Otani Junji 神戸大学, 医学研究科, 特命助教 (10770878)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: スプライシング / ヘテロクロマチン / N末端則

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Post-translational modification by ubiquitin and several ubiquitin like protein modifiers controls diverse cellular processes. There are many proteins carrying the protein domains structurally similar to ubiquitin without the ability to form covalent linkage. Sde2 was first identified as a factor involved in gene silencing at telomere in Schizosaccharomyces pombe and later found to be required for mRNA splicing. In this study, we showed that the evolutionary conserved ubiquitin like domain (Ubl) of Sde2 at its N-terminus is cleaved off in S. pombe and also in human cells. We found that the Ubl itself is dispensable but the newly exposed neo N-terminus after removal of the Ubl is important for mRNA splicing.

Free Research Field

生化学