Bacterial RNase III: Targets and physiology
Abstract
Bacteria can rapidly adapt to changes in their environment thanks to the innate flexibility of their genetic expression. The high turnover rate of RNAs, in particular messenger and regulatory RNAs, provides an important contribution to this dynamic adjustment. Recycling of RNAs is ensured by ribonucleases, among which RNase III is the focus of this review. RNase III enzymes are highly conserved from prokaryotes to eukaryotes and have the specific ability to cleave double-stranded RNAs. The role of RNase III in bacterial physiology has remained poorly explored for a long time. However, transcriptomic approaches recently uncovered a large impact of RNase III in gene expression in a wide range of bacteria, generating renewed interest in the physiological role of RNase III. In this review, we first describe the RNase III targets identified from global approaches in 8 bacterial species within 4 Phyla. We then present the conserved and unique functions of bacterial RNase III focusing on growth, resistance to stress, biofilm formation, motility and virulence. Altogether, this review highlights the underestimated impact of RNase III in bacterial adaptation.
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BibTeX
@article{lejars2026bacterial,
title = {{Bacterial RNase III: Targets and physiology}},
author = {Maxence Lejars and Eliane Hajnsdorf},
journal = {Biochimie},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1016/j.biochi.2023.07.009},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05732262v1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Bacterial RNase III: Targets and physiology
AU - Maxence Lejars
AU - Eliane Hajnsdorf
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/09
JO - Biochimie
DO - 10.1016/j.biochi.2023.07.009
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05732262v1
AB - Bacteria can rapidly adapt to changes in their environment thanks to the innate flexibility of their genetic expression. The high turnover rate of RNAs, in particular messenger and regulatory RNAs, provides an important contribution to this dynamic adjustment. Recycling of RNAs is ensured by ribonucleases, among which RNase III is the focus of this review. RNase III enzymes are highly conserved from prokaryotes to eukaryotes and have the specific ability to cleave double-stranded RNAs. The role of RNase III in bacterial physiology has remained poorly explored for a long time. However, transcriptomic approaches recently uncovered a large impact of RNase III in gene expression in a wide range of bacteria, generating renewed interest in the physiological role of RNase III. In this review, we first describe the RNase III targets identified from global approaches in 8 bacterial species within 4 Phyla. We then present the conserved and unique functions of bacterial RNase III focusing on growth, resistance to stress, biofilm formation, motility and virulence. Altogether, this review highlights the underestimated impact of RNase III in bacterial adaptation.
SN - 0300-9084
SN - 1638-6183
ER -