Once thought to be a biological rarity, self-cleaving RNA enzymes—ribozymes—are being discovered in increasing numbers, thanks to new search tools. Now, in addition to studying their unusual chemical properties, scientists will be able to identify ribozymes in useful model organisms; bringing the field one step closer to defining whether these catalytic RNAs have a broad function in gene regulation.
Ribozymes were first identified as “selfish” genetic elements—genes that replicate themselves apart from usual cellular mechanisms, often harming the host cell—such as the genetic material found in viruses and satellite plasmids. This suggests that ribozymes are remnants of an evolutionary era predominated by RNA life forms. Researchers have been able to artificially evolve new RNA catalysts in the lab, demonstrating that they should be able to arise quite readily,1 but the slow rate of discovery of naturally occurring ribozymes suggested that ribozymes may actually be quite rare—curiosities of unusual biological systems ...
