RNA Viruses: RNA Roles in Pathogenesis, Coreplication and Viral Load

Poltronieri, Palmiro; Sun, Binlian; Mallardo, Massimo

RNA agents have been shown to play essential roles in evolution and regulation in all D N A /protein based life: based on RNA stem-loop secondary structures (built of paired stems and not-paired loops), pseudoknots, and loops with sequences showing affinity to target proteins. Group I and group II introns, viroids, viral (R N A and DNA viruses, bacteriophages, retrotransposons, Long Terminal Repeats) networks cooperate within cellular genomes as modular. Some non-coding RNAs have built complementary consortia, such as rRNAs, tRNAs, spliceosomes, editosomes, and other ribonucleoprotein particles (RNPs) [1] . Additionally, counterbalancing modules such as restriction/modification (RM) modules have evolved, assuring identity (self/non-self) of organisms. All fine-tuned steps of key cellular processes such as gene expression, transcription, translation, D N A recombination and repair, epigenetic imprinting, as well as various forms of innate and adaptive immunity, are essentially constituted by natural genetic content operators.