Fig. 1

Schematic depicting role of RiboJ insulation on transcripts. Constructs in (a) and (b) have same coding region and are identical at the DNA level except for different promoters. However, the constructs in (a) and (b) result in different transcripts. Construct (b) has a synthetic promoter that contains an internal transcriptional start site leading to the inclusion of additional sequences in the transcript. This 5’ RNA leader can affect the stability of the RNA and result in different translational expression properties as well. The same constructs depicted in (a) and (b) are shown in (c) and d, except with the addition of the insulator RiboJ. Following transcription, the ribozyme RiboJ self-cleaves, resulting in standardized and identical transcripts