Iranian Scientists Register 2 New Genes in US Genetic Database
The two new genes taken from two bacteria Streptococcus and Pedicococcus were registered in the NCBI database by Maryam Safarpour and Tohid Piri, two PhD students of Islamic Azad University’s Shahr-e Kord branch in the field of genetics and biotechnology.
According to the researchers, rRNA genes were taken from two bacteria Streptococcus and Pedicococcus species TP71.
These two genes encode ribosomal RNA (rRNA). Ribosomal RNA is the most common form of RNA found in cells and is the molecule that exists in the structure of ribosomes. Ribosomes are organelles responsible for protein synthesis.
Safarpour told ANA that “the RNA along with DNA and protein are the three main macromolecules that are essential for all known biological species”.
“Ribosomal RNAs are non-coding RNAs and play a role in protein synthesis. These two recorded genes are two rRNAs of bacteria and are considered to be the main components of cells,” she added.
“In this research, we came across the sequence of two new genes in Streptococcus and Pedicococcus bacteria, which were not present in valid genomic databases,” Safarpour said.
“After making sure that the mentioned genes are new, their sequences were sent to the NCBI database in the US and after assessments, the names of these two genes were registered in the NCBI database,” she noted.
Ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes are present in all prokaryotes and weakly affected by horizontal gene transfer and mutation.
These genes, in particular the sequence of the 16S rRNA gene, contain some regions that are highly conserved and other regions that have variable nucleic acid sequences.
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