Nuclear export and import of RNA. The GTP-hydrolyzing protein Ran regulates RNA-receptor interactions. For nuclear export, the RNA cargo and its exportin receptor associate with Ran-GTP and the complex moves to the cytoplasm, where GTP is hydrolyzed to GDP and the cargo is released. For import, the RNA and its importin receptor cross through a nuclear pore into the nucleus, where GDP is exchanged for GTP and the RNA cargo is released.