STAXI RNA motif


The Ssbp, Topoisomerase, Antirestriction, XerDC Integrase RNA motif is a conserved RNA-like structure identified using bioinformatics. STAXI RNAs are located near to genes encoding proteins that interact with DNA or are associated with such proteins. This observation raised the possibility that instances of the STAXI motif function as single-stranded DNA molecules, perhaps during DNA replication or DNA repair. On the other hand, STAXI motifs often contain terminal loops conforming to the stable UNCG tetraloop, but the DNA version of this tetraloop is not especially stable. The STAXI motif consists of a simple pseudoknot structure that is repeated two or more times.
A number of other RNAs were identified in the same study, including: