Conformational flexibility in RNA: The role of dihydrouridine

In order to further understand the structural role of the modified nucleoside dihydrouridine in RNA the solution conformations of Dp and ApDpA were analyzed by one- and two-dimensional proton NMR spectroscopy and compared with those of the related uridine-containing compounds, The analyses indicate that dihydrouridine significantly destabilizes the C3'-endo sugar conformation associated with base stacked, ordered, A-type helical RNA, Equilibrium constants (K-eq = [C2'-endo]/[C3'-endo]) for C2'-endo-C3'-endo interconversion at 25 degrees C for Dp, the 5'-terminal A of ApDpA and D in ApDpA are 2.08, 1.35 and 10.8 respectively, Stabilization of the C2'-endo form was shown to be enhanced at low temperature, indicating that C2'-endo is the thermodynamically favored conformation for dihydrouridine, Delta H values show that for Dp the C2'-endo sugar conformation is stabilized by 1.5 kcal/mol compared with Up, This effect is amplified for D in the oligonucleotide ApDpA and propagated to the 5'-neighboring A, with stabilization of the C2'-endo form by 5.3 kcal/mol for D and 3.6 kcal/mol for the 5'-terminal A, Post-transcriptional formation of dihydrouridine therefore represents a biological strategy opposite in effect to ribose methylation, 2-thiolation or pseudouridylation, all of which enhance regional stability through stabilization of the C3'-endo conformer, Dihydrouridine effectively promotes the C2'-endo sugar conformation, allowing for greater conformational flexibility and dynamic motion in regions of RNA where tertiary interactions and loop formation must be simultaneously accomodated.