Abstract
More than 80 non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) have been identified in Escherichia coli while a few ncRNAs are known in cyanobacteria. In our laboratory, the entire genome of a unicellular cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus PCC 6301 (hereafter PCC 6301) was sequenced and 2,525 potential protein-coding genes and 55 RNA genes were assigned. To identify novel ncRNA genes in the PCC 6301 genome, we compared the intergenic regions of the PCC 6301 genome with three freshwater cyanobacteria, Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, Nostoc sp. PCC 7120 and Thermosynechococcus elongatus BP-1 genomes. This analysis revealed three putative ncRNA genes. One was located between syc2263_d (guaB) and syc2264_d (trxA). We have already reported as Yfr1 RNA (Nakamure et al. PCP 2007). The other two were located in the downstream of syc0182_d (rluA) and in the downstream of syc0894_d (rplL).
