The group IIB intron from the green alga Scenedesmus obliquus mitochondrion: molecular characterization of the in vitro splicing products

Abstract

In the presence of high molar salt concentrations, the mitochondrial group IIB intron (rI1) from the green alga Scenedesmus obliquus is capable of splicing in vitro. After establishing the optimal conditions for RNA processing the in vitro splicing products were unequivocally identified in self-splicing experiments by Northern hybridization analysis employing 3'end-labelled RNAs or exon- and/or intron-specific probes. Finally, two trans-esterification products were identified by sequencing of the spliced RNA. From our data we conclude that the processing of group II introns from both algal and yeast mitochondria is preceded by identical consecutive trans-esterification steps. The predicted secondary and tertiary structure of intron rI1 of S. obliquus contains all the motifs necessary for optimal self-splicing and which are characteristic of other group IIB introns from different species.