| Abstract: | The thermal denaturation method for studying the structural organization of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) from virus-like particles of killer yeasts Saccharomyces cerevisiae was used. High resolution derivative denaturation profiles of total dsRNA and its L- and M-types were obtained. Comparative analysis of these data with those on phage DNA denaturation demonstrated that the processes of denaturation of dsRNA and phage DNA were identical in quality. Increase of thermostability, interval of thermal denaturation and width of local helix-to-coil transitions in dsRNA as compared with phage DNA are caused by the differences of corresponding thermodynamic parameters. Derivative denaturation profiles of L- and M-types of yeasts dsRNA were shown to have certain identical local transitions. Low melting transition, consisting of three local thermalites, is due to the denaturation of AU-rich region (about 200 n.b.p.) in M-dsRNA. |
