Yeast processing bodies and stress granules: Self-assembly ribonucleoprotein particles

Abstract

Processing bodies (PBs) and stress granules (SGs) are two highly conserved cytoplasmic ribonucleoprotein foci that contain translationally repressed mRNAs together with proteins from the mRNA metabolism. Interestingly, they also share some common features with other granules, including the prokaryotic inclusion bodies. Although the function of PBs and SGs remains elusive, major advances have been done in unraveling their composition and assembly by using the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisae. © 2011 Giménez-Barcons and Díez; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.