Adenosine deaminases that act on RNA (ADARs) deaminate adenosines to produce inosines within RNAs that are largely double-stranded (ds). Like most dsRNA binding proteins, the enzymes will bind to any dsRNA without apparent sequence specificity. However, once bound, ADARs deaminate certain adenosines more efficiently than others. Most of what is known about the intrinsic deamination specificity ...

RNA helicases are proteins essential to almost every facet of RNA metabolism, including the gene-silencing pathways that employ small RNAs. A phylogenetically related group of helicases is required for the RNA-silencing mechanism in Caenorhabditis elegans. Dicer-related helicase 3 (DRH-3) is a Dicer-RIG-I family protein that is essential for RNA silencing and germline development in nematodes. ...

RNA helicases are proteins essential to almost every facet of RNA metabolism, including the gene-silencing pathways that employ small RNAs. A phylogenetically related group of helicases is required for the RNA-silencingmechanism inCaenorhabditis elegans. Dicer-related helicase 3 (DRH-3) is a DicerRIG-I family protein that is essential for RNA silencing and germline development in nematodes. Her...

The activation of 2'-5'-oligoadenylate synthetase (OAS) enzymes by direct interaction with viral double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) is a key part the innate immune response to infection. A downstream effect OAS-dsRNA degrade single-stranded prevent spread virus. OAS2, one members OAS family, depends on dsRNA length. Combining in vitro experiments and mathematical modelling, we test different hypothese...

Alanine-substitution mutations were targeted to 14 amino acid residues within the double-stranded (ds) RNA binding motif (dsRBM) of the vaccinia virus E3 protein. Substitutions at six positions--Glu-124, Phe-135, Phe-148, Lys-167, Arg-168, and Lys-171--caused significant reductions in dsRNA binding. These six residues are conserved in the two dsRBMs for which structural information is available...

RIG-I and MDA5 sense virus-derived short 5'ppp blunt-ended or long dsRNA, respectively, causing interferon production. Non-signaling LGP2 appears to positively and negatively regulate MDA5 and RIG-I signaling, respectively. Co-crystal structures of chicken (ch) LGP2 with dsRNA display a fully or semi-closed conformation depending on the presence or absence of nucleotide. LGP2 caps blunt, 3' or ...