Trypanosoma brucei splicing complexes

In trypanosomatids, protein-coding genes are transcribed as polycistronic pre-mRNAs, which undergo processing through trans-splicing. Trans-splicing is mediated by a large protein-RNA complex called the spliceosome, which in other eukaryotes predominantly facilitates a different process, cis-splicing. In contrast to extensive structural and biochemical studies of the cis-splicing spliceosome, structural data of the trypanosomal cis- and trans-splicing complexes are lacking.