[Frontiers in Bioscience 16, 1787-1796, January 1, 2011]

KSRP, many functions for a single protein  

Paola Briata1, Ching-Yi Chen2, Matteo Giovarelli3,4, Michela Pasero3, Michele Trabucchi5, Andres Ramos6, Roberto Gherzi1

1Istituto Nazionale per la Ricerca sul Cancro (IST), 16132 Genova, ITALY, 2Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama 35294, USA, 3RNA Technology Laboratory, Centro di Biotecnologie Avanzate, 16132 Genova, Italy, 4Universita' degli Studi di Genova, Largo R. Benzi, 10, 16132 Genova, Italy, 5Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department and School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, Room 345, La Jolla, California 92093-0648, USA, 6Division of Molecular Structure, MRC National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, U.K.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Abstract
2. Introduction
2.1. The origins
2.2. Discovery of additional functions
3. KSRP and mRNA decay control
4. Extracellular signals control mRNA decay rates targeting KSRP
5. KSRP acts as a positive co-regulator in the maturation of a cohort of miRNA precursors
6. KSRP-RNA target selectivity
7. Perspectives
8. Acknowledgements
9. References

1. ABSTRACT

KSRP is a single-strand nucleic acids binding protein that affects RNA fate at multiple levels. KSRP modular structure and its complex pattern of post-translational modifications underpin the interaction with a wide spectrum of RNA target sequences, as well as with other RNA-binding proteins and molecular adaptors. These interactions are important to the regulation of different steps of mRNA metabolism and, in turn, modulate several aspects of cellular proliferation and differentiation. In this review we will discuss in detail KSRP ability to i) promote decay of labile mRNAs interacting with some components of the mRNA decay machinery and ii) favor the maturation of a select group of microRNA precursors.