Overview of the RNA G-quadruplex structures

Abstract

G-quadruplexes are non-canonical secondary structures which may be formed by guanine rich sequences, both in vitro and in living cells. The number of biological functions assigned to these structural motifs has grown rapidly since the discovery of their involvement in the telomere maintenance. Knowledge of the G-quadruplexes' three-dimensional structures plays an important role in understanding of their conformational diversity, physiological functions, and in the design of novel drugs targeting the G-quadruplexes. In the last decades, structural studies have been mainly focused on the DNA G-quadruplexes. Their RNA counterparts gained an increased interest along with a still-emerging recognition of the central role of RNA in multiple cellular processes. In this review we focus on structural properties of the RNA G-quadruplexes, based on high-resolution structures available in the RCSB PDB data base and on structural models. In addition, we point out the current challenges in this field of research.