text: The Sm proteins are synthesized in the cytoplasm by ribosomes translating Sm messenger RNA, just like any other protein.  These are stored in the cytoplasm in the form of three partially assembled rings complexes all associated with the pICln protein. They are a 6S pentamer complex of SmD1, SmD2, SmF, SmE and SmG with pICln, a 2-4S complex of SmB, possibly with SmD3 and pICln and the 20S methylosome, which is a large complex of SmD3, SmB, SmD1, pICln and the arginine methyltransferase-5 (PRMT5) protein.  SmD3, SmB and SmD1 undergo post-translational modification in the methylosome.  These three Sm proteins have repeated arginine-glycine motifs in the C-terminal ends of SmD1, SmD3 and SmB, and the arginine side chains are symmetrically dimethylated to ω-N, N-dimethyl-arginine. It has been suggested that pICln, which occurs in all three precursor complexes but is absent in the mature snRNPs, acts as a specialized chaperone, preventing premature assembly of Sm proteins.