DUF283 domain of Dicer proteins has a double-stranded RNA-binding fold

Two RNases, Dicer and Argonaute, are at the heart of the RNA interference (RNAi) molecular machinery responsible for gene si-lencing. Both RNases contain multiple domains, most of which have been characterized or have functions that can be predicted based on sequence comparisons. However, Dicers of higher eukaryotes contain the domain known as DUF283 which at present has no as-signed role. Using sensitive profile-profile comparisons, we detected a divergent double-stranded RNA-binding domain coinciding with the DUF283 of Dicer. This finding has potential implications regard-ing the mechanistic role of Dicer in RNAi. Contact