Hsp17 thermometer


In molecular biology, the Hsp17 thermometer is an RNA element found in the 5' UTR of Hsp17 mRNA. Hsp17 is a cyanobacterial heat shock protein belonging to the Hsp20 family.
At physiological temperature the Hsp17 thermometer forms a hairpin structure, preventing translation of Hsp17. Under heat shock conditions the hairpin structure melts and translation takes place.