Hydrolytic endonucleolytic ribozyme (HYER) is programmable for sequence-specific DNA cleavage. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38301022/)

These scientists wanted to find special molecules called ribozymes that can do different jobs inside cells. They were particularly interested in ribozymes that can cut DNA in a specific way. They studied a type of ribozyme called group II-C introns that are found in bacteria.

They discovered that some of these introns can make copies of themselves inside the bacteria's genetic material. They called these special introns HYERs, which stands for HYdrolytic Endonucleolytic Ribozymes. These HYERs were able to cut different types of molecules like RNA, single-stranded DNA, and even double-stranded DNA.

The scientists also found that one specific HYER, called HYER1, was able to break the DNA inside the cells of mammals. They used a special technique called cryo-electron microscopy to look at the structure of HYER1 and found that it was made up of two identical parts called monomers. Each monomer had a pocket that needed a special molecule called magnesium to work and could grab onto DNA that matched a specific sequence.

The scientists then used their knowledge to make changes to the HYER1 ribozyme. They made it even better at cutting DNA in a specific way by adding extra sequences and making it work with other molecules. These changes made the ribozyme more flexible and precise when it came to manipulating DNA.

Overall, these scientists discovered and improved a special type of ribozyme called HYERs that can cut DNA in a specific way. This knowledge could be very useful for scientists who want to manipulate and study DNA in the future.

Liu ZX., Zhang S., Zhu HZ., Chen ZH., Yang Y., Li LQ., Lei Y., Liu Y., Li DY., Sun A., Li CP., Tan SQ., Wang GL., Shen JY., Jin S., Gao C., Liu JG. Hydrolytic endonucleolytic ribozyme (HYER) is programmable for sequence-specific DNA cleavage. Science. 2024 Feb 2;383(6682):eadh4859. doi: 10.1126/science.adh4859. Epub 2024 Feb 2.