p65 protein with piece of telomerase RNA
The protein tail (red) of the p65 protein (left) pries apart the strands of the RNA double helix (right), causing it to change shape and facilitating the attachment of another essential protein called telomerase reverse transcriptase. The figure shows the crystal structure of the p65 protein, along with a piece of telomerase RNA.
(Credit: Mahavir Singh, Juli Feigon/UCLA Chemistry and Biochemistry)