YbeY is a single strand-specific metallo-endoribonuclease involved in late-stage 70S ribosome quality control and in maturation of the 3' terminus of the 16S rRNA. It acts together with the RNase R to eliminate defective 70S ribosomes, but not properly matured 70S ribosomes or individual subunits, by a process mediated specifically by the 30S ribosomal subunit. It is involved in the processing of 16S, 23S and 5S rRNAs, with a particularly strong effect on maturation at both the 5'-and 3'-ends of 16S rRNA as well as maturation of the 5'-end of 23S and 5S rRNAs [, , , , ].The crystal structure of the protein from the hyperthermophilic bacteria Aquifex aeolicus has been determined. The overall fold consists of one central α-helix surrounded by a four-stranded β-sheet and four other α-helices. Structure-based homology analysis reveals a good resemblance to the metal-dependent proteinases such as collagenases and gelatinases. However, experimental tests for collagenase and gelatinase-type function show no detectable activity under standard assay conditions [].
YbeY is a single strand-specific metallo-endoribonuclease involved in late-stage 70S ribosome quality control and in maturation of the 3' terminus of the 16S rRNA. It acts together with the RNase R to eliminate defective 70S ribosomes, but not properly matured 70S ribosomes or individual subunits, by a process mediated specifically by the 30S ribosomal subunit. It is involved in the processing of 16S, 23S and 5S rRNAs, with a particularly strong effect on maturation at both the 5'-and 3'-ends of 16S rRNA as well as maturation of the 5'-end of 23S and 5S rRNAs [, , , ].YbeY contains a conserved region with three histidines at the C terminus. This entry represents this region.
