Recoding: Expansion of Decoding Rules Enriches Gene Expression

The dynamic nature of decoding the information in messenger RNA was unanticipated at the time the genetic code was first deciphered. We now know that both the meaning of individual codons and the framing of the readout process can be modified by information in specific messenger RNAs. This book describes this "Recoding" phenomenon, revealing the diversity of an additional layer of information in mRNAs that serves to enrich the expression of genes. Knowledge of recoding is essential for understanding the organization and expression of genes in viruses and all organisms ranging from bacteria to archeae to plants to humans, making Recoding pertinent to all biological sciences. The genetic code is dynamic it, or its readout, can be specifically changed by mRNA signals that modify the behavior of on-board ribosomes. Many viruses use recoding to maximize utilization of information in small genomes, and probably all organisms use recoding in at least some genes for expanding the regulatory repertoire. The volume will detail specific recoding examples to understand the mechanisms and the mRNA signals. It will continue to detail the biochemical and genetic approaches to identify and study the cellular factors involved in recoding. The signals in mRNA that dictate recoding often include complex folded structures of the RNA, which we are studying by a combination of microbiology, genetics, biochemical and NMR approaches.