The hammerhead ribozyme.

The hammerhead ribozyme is an intriguing RNA molecule with the ability to serve as a catalyst to cleave sequence-specifically RNA molecules in an intermolecular reaction. Preferentially Mg(2+) is required for optimal activity by inducing the catalytically competent conformation and by possibly acting as an acid-base catalyst. Even though the three-dimensional structure has been elucidated details of the structure-function relationship and of the mechanism remain unanswered. The hammerhead ribozyme has stimulated the concept of the sequence-specific cleavage of mRNAs intracellularly and thus to inhibit gene expression by preventing translation. This represents an area of considerable interest as it has the potential for the development of drugs.