Poster abstracts
Poster number 138 submitted by Aparna Venkataraman
Bioinformatics analysis of human mRNA coding sequences to identify putative G-quadruplex forming sequences
Aparna Venkataraman (Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Kent State University), Gayan Mirihana Arachchilage, Debmalya Bhattacharyya , Soumitra Basu (Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Kent State University, Kent, OH)
Abstract:
G-quadruplexes (GQs) are non-canonical secondary structures consisting of stacked G- quartets, which are planar structures of four guanine bases, linked via Hoogsteen hydrogen bonding. GQs are found widespread in various types of RNA, including mRNA, long noncoding RNA, telomeric RNA, and viral genomic RNA. Consequently, RNA GQs are known to play vital roles in RNA biology. G-quadruplexes present within the 5’-UTRs of mRNA have been shown to serve a critical function in translational modulation. While 5’-UTR GQs have been previously identified using bioinformatics approaches, GQs within the coding regions of mRNAs have yet to be analyzed. Here we present our findings on the potential of GQ formation within the coding sequence (CDS) through multi-pronged computational analyses. Our initial screening indicates a sizeable number of putative GQ forming sequences within the CDS. We will also determine codon usage bias against the formation of G-quadruplexes within the CDS of human mRNAs. Given that the presence of secondary structures, including GQs, within the CDS would have a deleterious effect on translation, we believe that this study will provide new insight into an additional regulatory mechanism in protein synthesis.
Keywords: coding sequence, G-quadruplex, bioinformatics