Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
(a)
(b)
(c)
Figure 5.4
(See companion CD for color igure.)
.RNA/ncRNA.interactions..mRNA.and.noncoding.RNA.can.interact.in.
various.ways..(a).Formation.of.double-stranded.RNA.creates.new.protein.binding.site..(b).RNA.binding.stabi-
lizes.binding.site..(c).RNA.binding.forces.conformational.change,.removing.binding.site.
George. and. Tenenbaum. 2006).. These. interactions. represent. a. possible. means. of. RNA.
regulation..Given.the.essential.importance.of.speciic.structure.shown.with.the.second-
ary. and. tertiary. structure,. even. slight. alterations. of. conformation. present. a. powerful.
tool.for.manipulating.quaternary.interactions..By.creating.an.RNA.that.is.able.to.alter.
ligand,. protein,. or. RNA. binding. properties. by. the. presence. or. absence. of. other. RNA.
molecules.or.interactions,.RNA.can.be.used.as.a.nanosized.switch.or.capture.molecule.
5.4 RNA Nanotechnology
RNA.nanotechnology.is.a.small.but.rapidly.growing.ield,.but.the.ideas.for.most.of.the.
research.have.been.expanding.since.the.mid-1990s..The.two.major.factors.for.this.boost.
are.the.increasing.awareness.of.RNA.as.a.viable.tool.for.molecular.interactions.as.well.as.
the.slow.transition.for.many.of.these.concepts.to.being.associated.with.nanotechnology.
and.not.simply.as.the.exclusive.purview.of.molecular.biology..This.growing.acknowledg-
ment.is.a.great.advantage.for.all.parties.involved,.as.molecular.biologists.acquire.greater.
tools. for. delivery. and. engineering. ields. get. the. beneit. of. analyzing. and. manipulating.
natural.systems.
DNA.has.been.viewed.through.the.nanotechnology.lens.for.far.longer.than.RNA,.but.it.
is.only.recently.that.much.of.this.research.has.come.to.fruition..Given.the.relative.ease.of.
DNA.synthesis,.complementary.base.pairing,.and.strength.of.the.double.helix,.DNA.was.
viewed.and.eventually.manufactured.as.nanoscale.structures..The.best.representation.of.
this.is.the.DNA.origami.inspired.by.Seeman.and.other.groups.(Seeman.2010)..While.these.
scaffolds.and.boxes.represent.an.important.area.of.research,.DNA.lacks.the.lexibility.of.
RNA,.both.in.structural.form.and.binding.interactions.
One. major. proponent. of. RNA. as. a. nanotechnology. has. been. the. Guo. lab,. which. has.
performed. extensive. research. on. the. structure,. function,. and. membrane. incorporation.
of. the. packaging. RNA. (pRNA). phi29. DNA. packaging. motor,. an. ATP-driven. motor. that.
packs.DNA.into.viral.capsids.(Guo.et.al..1998)..This.pRNA.is.an.excellent.example.of.the.
3D.structure.of.the.RNA.serving.as.a.structural.scaffold,.such.as.the.phi29.relying.on.a.
RNA. hexamer. “gearing”. the. motor,. providing. valuable. structural. data. for. the. develop-
ment.of.artiicial.RNA.structures.(Guo.et.al..1987,.1998;.Guo.2005)..This.research.has.also.
led.to.the.creation.of.RNA.dimers.and.trimers.as.polyvalent.nanoparticle.delivery.vehicles.
