What is the Significance of Catalytic RNA (Ribozymes) in Gene Expression?
Ribozymes are RNA molecules that possess enzymatic activity. They play a critical role in the RNA splicing process, where introns are removed from pre-mRNA and exons are joined to form mature mRNA. This splicing is essential for the correct expression of many genes. Ribozymes highlight that not only proteins can act as catalysts, but RNA molecules can also catalyze important biochemical reactions.
