Hairpin ribozyme catalysis: A surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy study

The existence of an “RNA world” as an early step in the history of life increases the interest for the characterization of these biomolecules. The hairpin ribozyme studied here is a self‐cleaving/ligating motif found in the minus strand of the satellite RNA associated with Tobacco ringspot virus. Surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a powerful tool to study trace amounts of RNA. In controlled conditions, a SERS signal is proportional to the amount of free residues adsorbed on the metal surface. On RNA cleavage, residues are unpaired and free to interact with metal. SERS procedures are used to monitor and quantify the catalysis of ribozyme cleavage at biological concentrations in real time; thus, they propose an interesting alternative to electrophoretic methods. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers 91: 384–390, 2009. This article was originally published online as an accepted preprint. The “Published Online” date corresponds to the preprint version. You can request a copy of the preprint by emailing the Biopolymers editorial office at biopolymers@wiley.com