Studies continue in the area of RNA transport and processing. The 5' tRNA processing nuclease was fully characterized this past year and found to represent an enzyme of extraordinary size and structure. Studies on mRNA nuclear transport were brought to an initial phase of completion by our discovery of a novel and unexpected role of the promoter of a gene in the transport process. Our studies have demonstrated a particularly crucial role for the TATA homology in the disposition of mRNA between nucleus and cytoplasm of a eukaryotic cell.
