2'-5'-oligoadenylate synthase explained

In molecular biology, 2'-5'-oligoadenylate synthetase (2-5A synthetase) is an enzyme that reacts to interferon signal. It is an antiviral enzyme that counteracts viral attack by degrading RNAs, both viral and host. The enzyme uses ATP in 2'-specific nucleotidyl transfer reactions to synthesize 2'-5'-oligoadenylates, which activate latent ribonuclease (RNase-L), resulting in degradation of viral RNA and inhibition of virus replication.^[1]

The C-terminal half of 2'-5'-oligoadenylate synthetase, also referred to as domain 2 of the enzyme, is largely alpha-helical and homologous to a tandem ubiquitin repeat. It carries the region of enzymatic activity between at the extreme C-terminal end.^[2]

Human proteins

• OAS1
• OAS2
• OAS3

See also

• OASL

Notes and References

1. Ghosh SK, Kusari J, Bandyopadhyay SK, Samanta H, Kumar R, Sen GC . Cloning, sequencing, and expression of two murine 2'-5'-oligoadenylate synthetases. Structure-function relationships . J. Biol. Chem. . 266 . 23 . 15293–9 . August 1991 . 1651324 .
2. Hartmann R, Justesen J, Sarkar SN, Sen GC, Yee VC . Crystal structure of the 2'-specific and double-stranded RNA-activated interferon-induced antiviral protein 2'-5'-oligoadenylate synthetase . Mol. Cell . 12 . 5 . 1173–85 . November 2003 . 14636576 . 10.1016/S1097-2765(03)00433-7. free .