tRNA-splicing endonuclease subunit Sen2 (TSEN2)

Constitutes one of the two catalytic subunit of the tRNA-splicing endonuclease complex, a complex responsible for identification and cleavage of the splice sites in pre-tRNA. It cleaves pre-tRNA at the 5'- and 3'-splice sites to release the intron.

The products are an intron and two tRNA half-molecules bearing 2',3'-cyclic phosphate and 5'-OH termini. There are no conserved sequences at the splice sites, however, the intron is invariably located at exactly the identical site in the receptor, setting the splice sites an invariant distance from the continuous structural characteristics of the tRNA body.