Summary
The 16 S ribosomal RNAs of twoProcaryotes, Escherichia coli andBacillus megaterium were characterized by oligomer cataloging (oligomers produced by T1 nuclease digestion), in an attempt to detect their primary structural homology and as an initial step in characterizing this homology. Oligomer sequence coincidence between the two catalogs far in excess of the random expected levels was observed. Statistically significant coincidence was most pronounced for the hexamers and pentamers, suggesting that the overall structure of 16 S ribosomal RNA may be such that conservation of large stretches of its primary structure (e.g. over eight nucleotides in length) is not in general essential.
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Pechman, K.J., Woese, C.R. Characterization of the primary structural homology between the 16 S ribosomal RNAs ofEscherichia coli andBacillus megaterium by oligomer cataloging. J Mol Evol 1, 230–240 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01660242
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01660242