Structural and Catalytic Roles of Metal Ions in RNA (Metal Ions in Life Sciences)

The discovery of ribozymes triggered a huge interest in the chemistry and biology of RNAs. Much of the recently made progress focusing on metal ions is addressed in Volume 9. This book, written by 28 internationally recognized experts, provides a most up-to-date view and it is thus of special relevance for colleagues teaching courses in biological inorganic chemistry and for researchers dealing, e.g., with nucleic acids, gene expression, and enzymology, but also for those in analytical and bioinorganic chemistry or biophysics. Structural and Catalytic Roles of Metal Ions in RNA describes metal ion-binding motives, methods to detect and characterize metal ion binding sites, and the role of metal ions in folding and catalysis. It deals with diffuse metal ion binding, RNA quadruplexes, the regulation of riboswitches, metal ions and ribozymes, including artificial ribozymes. The ribosome, ribozymes and redox cofactors, as well as the binding of kinetically inert metal ions to RNA are also considered.