The ''ssnA'' RNA motif is a conserved

RNA Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a polymeric molecule that is essential for most biological functions, either by performing the function itself (non-coding RNA) or by forming a template for the production of proteins (messenger RNA). RNA and deoxyrib ...

structure that was discovered by bioinformatics. ''ssnA'' motif RNAs are found in

Clostridiales The Eubacteriales are an order of bacteria placed within the class Clostridia. Phylogeny The currently accepted taxonomy is based on the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN) and National Center for Biotechnology Inf ...

. ''ssnA'' motif RNAs likely function as

cis-regulatory element ''Cis''-regulatory elements (CREs) or ''cis''-regulatory modules (CRMs) are regions of non-coding DNA which regulate the transcription of neighboring genes. CREs are vital components of genetic regulatory networks, which in turn control morpho ...

s, in view of their positions upstream of protein-coding

gene In biology, the word gene has two meanings. The Mendelian gene is a basic unit of heredity. The molecular gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA that is transcribed to produce a functional RNA. There are two types of molecular genes: protei ...

s. Specifically, they occur upstream of genes that are homologous to the ''ssnA'' gene of ''

Escherichia coli ''Escherichia coli'' ( )Wells, J. C. (2000) Longman Pronunciation Dictionary. Harlow ngland Pearson Education Ltd. is a gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, rod-shaped, coliform bacterium of the genus '' Escherichia'' that is commonly fo ...

'', even though ''ssnA'' RNAs are not themselves in ''E. coli'', or related organisms. This gene's biological function is not yet known (as of 2018), but it is predicted as a type of metallo-dependent hydrolase. ''ssnA'' RNAs are closely (within 20–30

base pair A base pair (bp) is a fundamental unit of double-stranded nucleic acids consisting of two nucleobases bound to each other by hydrogen bonds. They form the building blocks of the DNA double helix and contribute to the folded structure of both DNA ...

s) by Rho-independent transcription terminators.

References

{{reflist Non-coding RNA