Effect of Dicer mutants on small RNA expression

Schizosaccharomyces pombe data from Pierre Barraud, Marc Buhler et al. from ETH Zurich and FMI Basel on nuclear retention of fission yeast Dicer. Dicer proteins function in RNA interference (RNAi) pathways by generating small RNAs (sRNAs). The solution structure of the C-terminal domain of Schizosaccharomyces pombe Dicer (Dcr1) is reported here. The C-terminal domain of S pombe Dicer (Dcr1) structure reveals an unusual double-stranded RNA binding domain (dsRBD) fold embedding a novel zinc-binding motif that is conserved among dicers in yeast and constitutes a novel regulatory module that might represent a potential target for therapeutic intervention with fungal diseases.