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Komar AA, Samatova E, Rodnina MV. Translation Rates and Protein Folding. J Mol Biol 2024; 436:168384. [PMID: 38065274 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2023.168384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2023] [Revised: 12/01/2023] [Accepted: 12/02/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
The mRNA coding sequence defines not only the amino acid sequence of the protein, but also the speed at which the ribosomes move along the mRNA while making the protein. The non-uniform local kinetics - denoted as translational rhythm - is similar among mRNAs coding for related protein folds. Deviations from this conserved rhythm can result in protein misfolding. In this review we summarize the experimental evidence demonstrating how local translation rates affect cotranslational protein folding, with the focus on the synonymous codons and patches of charged residues in the nascent peptide as best-studied examples. Alterations in nascent protein conformations due to disturbed translational rhythm can persist off the ribosome, as demonstrated by the effects of synonymous codon variants of several disease-related proteins. Charged amino acid patches in nascent chains also modulate translation and cotranslational protein folding, and can abrogate translation when placed at the N-terminus of the nascent peptide. During cotranslational folding, incomplete nascent chains navigate through a unique conformational landscape in which earlier intermediate states become inaccessible as the nascent peptide grows. Precisely tuned local translation rates, as well as interactions with the ribosome, guide the folding pathway towards the native structure, whereas deviations from the natural translation rhythm may favor pathways leading to trapped misfolded states. Deciphering the 'folding code' of the mRNA will contribute to understanding the diseases caused by protein misfolding and to rational protein design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anton A Komar
- Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, 2121 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA; Department of Biochemistry and Center for RNA Science and Therapeutics, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA.
| | - Ekaterina Samatova
- Max Planck Department of Physical Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, 37077 Goettingen, Germany
| | - Marina V Rodnina
- Max Planck Department of Physical Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, 37077 Goettingen, Germany.
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2
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Rajasekaran N, Kaiser CM. Navigating the complexities of multi-domain protein folding. Curr Opin Struct Biol 2024; 86:102790. [PMID: 38432063 DOI: 10.1016/j.sbi.2024.102790] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Revised: 02/11/2024] [Accepted: 02/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
Proteome complexity has expanded tremendously over evolutionary time, enabling biological diversification. Much of this complexity is achieved by combining a limited set of structural units into long polypeptides. This widely used evolutionary strategy poses challenges for folding of the resulting multi-domain proteins. As a consequence, their folding differs from that of small single-domain proteins, which generally fold quickly and reversibly. Co-translational processes and chaperone interactions are important aspects of multi-domain protein folding. In this review, we discuss some of the recent experimental progress toward understanding these processes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Christian M Kaiser
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States; Bijvoet Center for Biomolecular Research, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands.
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3
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Bernardini A, Tora L. Co-translational Assembly Pathways of Nuclear Multiprotein Complexes Involved in the Regulation of Gene Transcription. J Mol Biol 2024; 436:168382. [PMID: 38061625 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2023.168382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2023] [Revised: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023]
Abstract
Most factors that regulate gene transcription in eukaryotic cells are multimeric, often large, protein complexes. The understanding of the biogenesis pathways of such large and heterogeneous protein assemblies, as well as the dimerization partner choice among transcription factors, is crucial to interpret and control gene expression programs and consequent cell fate decisions. Co-translational assembly (Co-TA) is thought to play key roles in the biogenesis of protein complexes by directing complex formation during protein synthesis. In this review we discuss the principles of Co-TA with a special focus for the assembly of transcription regulatory complexes. We outline the expected molecular advantages of establishing co-translational interactions, pointing at the available, or missing, evidence for each of them. We hypothesize different molecular mechanisms based on Co-TA to explain the allocation "dilemma" of paralog proteins and subunits shared by different transcription complexes. By taking as a paradigm the different assembly pathways employed by three related transcription regulatory complexes (TFIID, SAGA and ATAC), we discuss alternative Co-TA strategies for nuclear multiprotein complexes and the widespread - yet specific - use of Co-TA for the formation of nuclear complexes involved in gene transcription. Ultimately, we outlined a series of open questions which demand well-defined lines of research to investigate the principles of gene regulation that rely on the coordinated assembly of protein complexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Bernardini
- Institut de Génétique et de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, Illkirch, France; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, UMR7104, Illkirch, France; Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, U964 Illkirch, France; Université de Strasbourg, Illkirch, France.
| | - László Tora
- Institut de Génétique et de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, Illkirch, France; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, UMR7104, Illkirch, France; Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, U964 Illkirch, France; Université de Strasbourg, Illkirch, France.
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4
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Rao Y, Ahmed N, Pritchard J, O'Brien EP. Incorporating mutational heterogeneity to identify genes that are enriched for synonymous mutations in cancer. BMC Bioinformatics 2023; 24:462. [PMID: 38062391 PMCID: PMC10704839 DOI: 10.1186/s12859-023-05521-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 10/05/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Synonymous mutations, which change the DNA sequence but not the encoded protein sequence, can affect protein structure and function, mRNA maturation, and mRNA half-lives. The possibility that synonymous mutations might be enriched in cancer has been explored in several recent studies. However, none of these studies control for all three types of mutational heterogeneity (patient, histology, and gene) that are known to affect the accurate identification of non-synonymous cancer-associated genes. Our goal is to adopt the current standard for non-synonymous mutations in an investigation of synonymous mutations. RESULTS Here, we create an algorithm, MutSigCVsyn, an adaptation of MutSigCV, to identify cancer-associated genes that are enriched for synonymous mutations based on a non-coding background model that takes into account the mutational heterogeneity across these levels. Using MutSigCVsyn, we first analyzed 2572 cancer whole-genome samples from the Pan-cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes (PCAWG) to identify non-synonymous cancer drivers as a quality control. Indicative of the algorithm accuracy we find that 58.6% of these candidate genes were also found in Cancer Census Gene (CGC) list, and 66.2% were found within the PCAWG cancer driver list. We then applied it to identify 30 putative cancer-associated genes that are enriched for synonymous mutations within the same samples. One of the promising gene candidates is the B cell lymphoma 2 (BCL-2) gene. BCL-2 regulates apoptosis by antagonizing the action of proapoptotic BCL-2 family member proteins. The synonymous mutations in BCL2 are enriched in its anti-apoptotic domain and likely play a role in cancer cell proliferation. CONCLUSION Our study introduces MutSigCVsyn, an algorithm that accounts for mutational heterogeneity at patient, histology, and gene levels, to identify cancer-associated genes that are enriched for synonymous mutations using whole genome sequencing data. We identified 30 putative candidate genes that will benefit from future experimental studies on the role of synonymous mutations in cancer biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiyun Rao
- Huck Institute of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, State College, PA, 16802, USA
| | - Nabeel Ahmed
- Huck Institute of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, State College, PA, 16802, USA
- Moderna, Inc., Cambridge, USA
| | - Justin Pritchard
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, State College, PA, 16802, USA.
| | - Edward P O'Brien
- Department of Chemistry, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, State College, PA, 16802, USA.
- Institute for Computational and Data Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, State College, PA, 16802, USA.
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Bajaj P, Bhasin M, Varadarajan R. Molecular bases for strong phenotypic effects of single synonymous codon substitutions in the E. coli ccdB toxin gene. BMC Genomics 2023; 24:732. [PMID: 38049728 PMCID: PMC10694988 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-023-09817-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2023] [Accepted: 11/18/2023] [Indexed: 12/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Single synonymous codon mutations typically have only minor or no effects on gene function. Here, we estimate the effects on cell growth of ~ 200 single synonymous codon mutations in an operonic context by mutating almost all positions of ccdB, the 101-residue long cytotoxin of the ccdAB Toxin-Antitoxin (TA) operon to most degenerate codons. Phenotypes were assayed by transforming the mutant library into CcdB sensitive and resistant E. coli strains, isolating plasmid pools, and subjecting them to deep sequencing. Since autoregulation is a hallmark of TA operons, phenotypes obtained for ccdB synonymous mutants after transformation in a RelE toxin reporter strain followed by deep sequencing provided information on the amount of CcdAB complex formed. RESULTS Synonymous mutations in the N-terminal region involved in translation initiation showed the strongest non-neutral phenotypic effects. We observe an interplay of numerous factors, namely, location of the codon, codon usage, t-RNA abundance, formation of anti-Shine Dalgarno sequences, predicted transcript secondary structure, and evolutionary conservation in determining phenotypic effects of ccdB synonymous mutations. Incorporation of an N-terminal, hyperactive synonymous mutation, in the background of the single synonymous codon mutant library sufficiently increased translation initiation, such that mutational effects on either folding or termination of translation became more apparent. Introduction of putative pause sites not only affects the translational rate, but might also alter the folding kinetics of the protein in vivo. CONCLUSION In summary, the study provides novel insights into diverse mechanisms by which synonymous mutations modulate gene function. This information is useful in optimizing heterologous gene expression in E. coli and understanding the molecular bases for alteration in gene expression that arise due to synonymous mutations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Priyanka Bajaj
- Molecular Biophysics Unit, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, 560012, India
- Present address: Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of CA - San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
| | - Munmun Bhasin
- Molecular Biophysics Unit, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, 560012, India
| | - Raghavan Varadarajan
- Molecular Biophysics Unit, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, 560012, India.
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Buscà R, Onesto C, Egensperger M, Pouysségur J, Pagès G, Lenormand P. N-terminal alanine-rich (NTAR) sequences drive precise start codon selection resulting in elevated translation of multiple proteins including ERK1/2. Nucleic Acids Res 2023; 51:7714-7735. [PMID: 37414542 PMCID: PMC10450180 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkad528] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2022] [Accepted: 06/12/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023] Open
Abstract
We report the discovery of N-terminal alanine-rich sequences, which we term NTARs, that act in concert with their native 5'-untranslated regions to promote selection of the proper start codon. NTARs also facilitate efficient translation initiation while limiting the production of non-functional polypeptides through leaky scanning. We first identified NTARs in the ERK1/2 kinases, which are among the most important signaling molecules in mammals. Analysis of the human proteome reveals that hundreds of proteins possess NTARs, with housekeeping proteins showing a particularly high prevalence. Our data indicate that several of these NTARs act in a manner similar to those found in the ERKs and suggest a mechanism involving some or all of the following features: alanine richness, codon rarity, a repeated amino acid stretch and a nearby second AUG. These features may help slow down the leading ribosome, causing trailing pre-initiation complexes (PICs) to pause near the native AUG, thereby facilitating accurate translation initiation. Amplification of erk genes is frequently observed in cancer, and we show that NTAR-dependent ERK protein levels are a rate-limiting step for signal output. Thus, NTAR-mediated control of translation may reflect a cellular need to precisely control translation of key transcripts such as potential oncogenes. By preventing translation in alternative reading frames, NTAR sequences may be useful in synthetic biology applications, e.g. translation from RNA vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roser Buscà
- Université Côte d’Azur (UCA), CNRS UMR 7284 and INSERM U 1081, Institute for Research on Cancer and Aging Nice (IRCAN), 28 Avenue de Valombrose, 06107 Nice, France
- Centre Antoine Lacassagne, Nice, France
| | - Cercina Onesto
- Université Côte d’Azur (UCA), CNRS UMR 7284 and INSERM U 1081, Institute for Research on Cancer and Aging Nice (IRCAN), 28 Avenue de Valombrose, 06107 Nice, France
- Centre Antoine Lacassagne, Nice, France
- Polytech’Nice Sophia, Bioengineering Department, Sophia-Antipolis, France
| | - Mylène Egensperger
- Université Côte d’Azur (UCA), CNRS UMR 7284 and INSERM U 1081, Institute for Research on Cancer and Aging Nice (IRCAN), 28 Avenue de Valombrose, 06107 Nice, France
- Centre Antoine Lacassagne, Nice, France
| | - Jacques Pouysségur
- Université Côte d’Azur (UCA), CNRS UMR 7284 and INSERM U 1081, Institute for Research on Cancer and Aging Nice (IRCAN), 28 Avenue de Valombrose, 06107 Nice, France
- Centre Antoine Lacassagne, Nice, France
- Centre Scientifique de Monaco, Biomedical Department, Principality of Monaco
| | - Gilles Pagès
- Université Côte d’Azur (UCA), CNRS UMR 7284 and INSERM U 1081, Institute for Research on Cancer and Aging Nice (IRCAN), 28 Avenue de Valombrose, 06107 Nice, France
- Centre Antoine Lacassagne, Nice, France
- Centre Scientifique de Monaco, Biomedical Department, Principality of Monaco
| | - Philippe Lenormand
- Université Côte d’Azur (UCA), CNRS UMR 7284 and INSERM U 1081, Institute for Research on Cancer and Aging Nice (IRCAN), 28 Avenue de Valombrose, 06107 Nice, France
- Centre Antoine Lacassagne, Nice, France
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7
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Alonso AM, Diambra L. Dicodon-based measures for modeling gene expression. Bioinformatics 2023; 39:btad380. [PMID: 37307098 PMCID: PMC10287933 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btad380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Revised: 05/20/2023] [Accepted: 06/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/14/2023] Open
Abstract
MOTIVATION Codon usage preference patterns have been associated with modulation of translation efficiency, protein folding, and mRNA decay. However, new studies support that codon pair usage has also a remarkable effect at the gene expression level. Here, we expand the concept of CAI to answer if codon pair usage patterns can be understood in terms of codon usage bias, or if they offer new information regarding coding translation efficiency. RESULTS Through the implementation of a weighting strategy to consider the dicodon contributions, we observe that the dicodon-based measure has greater correlations with gene expression level than CAI. Interestingly, we have noted that dicodons associated with a low value of adaptiveness are related to dicodons which mediate strong translational inhibition in yeast. We have also noticed that some codon-pairs have a smaller dicodon contribution than estimated by the product of the respective codon contributions. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION Scripts, implemented in Python, are freely available for download at https://zenodo.org/record/7738276#.ZBIDBtLMIdU.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andres M Alonso
- Instituto Tecnológico Chascomús (INTECH), CONICET-UNSAM, Intendente Marino km 8.2, Chascomús, 7130 Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- CCT-La Plata, CONICET, Calle 8 Nº 1467, La Plata, B1904CMC Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Luis Diambra
- CCT-La Plata, CONICET, Calle 8 Nº 1467, La Plata, B1904CMC Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Centro Regional de Estudios Genómicos, FCE-UNLP, Blvd 120 N∘ 1461, La Plata, 1900 Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Kohler V, Andréasson C. Reversible protein assemblies in the proteostasis network in health and disease. Front Mol Biosci 2023; 10:1155521. [PMID: 37021114 PMCID: PMC10067754 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2023.1155521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 03/09/2023] [Indexed: 04/07/2023] Open
Abstract
While proteins populating their native conformations constitute the functional entities of cells, protein aggregates are traditionally associated with cellular dysfunction, stress and disease. During recent years, it has become clear that large aggregate-like protein condensates formed via liquid-liquid phase separation age into more solid aggregate-like particles that harbor misfolded proteins and are decorated by protein quality control factors. The constituent proteins of the condensates/aggregates are disentangled by protein disaggregation systems mainly based on Hsp70 and AAA ATPase Hsp100 chaperones prior to their handover to refolding and degradation systems. Here, we discuss the functional roles that condensate formation/aggregation and disaggregation play in protein quality control to maintain proteostasis and why it matters for understanding health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Verena Kohler
- Institute of Molecular Biosciences, University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Claes Andréasson
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
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9
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Fages‐Lartaud M, Hundvin K, Hohmann‐Marriott MF. Mechanisms governing codon usage bias and the implications for protein expression in the chloroplast of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2022; 112:919-945. [PMID: 36071273 PMCID: PMC9828097 DOI: 10.1111/tpj.15970] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/01/2022] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Chloroplasts possess a considerably reduced genome that is decoded via an almost minimal set of tRNAs. These features make an excellent platform for gaining insights into fundamental mechanisms that govern protein expression. Here, we present a comprehensive and revised perspective of the mechanisms that drive codon selection in the chloroplast of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and the functional consequences for protein expression. In order to extract this information, we applied several codon usage descriptors to genes with different expression levels. We show that highly expressed genes strongly favor translationally optimal codons, while genes with lower functional importance are rather affected by directional mutational bias. We demonstrate that codon optimality can be deduced from codon-anticodon pairing affinity and, for a small number of amino acids (leucine, arginine, serine, and isoleucine), tRNA concentrations. Finally, we review, analyze, and expand on the impact of codon usage on protein yield, secondary structures of mRNA, translation initiation and termination, and amino acid composition of proteins, as well as cotranslational protein folding. The comprehensive analysis of codon choice provides crucial insights into heterologous gene expression in the chloroplast of C. reinhardtii, which may also be applicable to other chloroplast-containing organisms and bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxime Fages‐Lartaud
- Department of BiotechnologyNorwegian University of Science and TechnologyTrondheimN‐7491Norway
| | - Kristoffer Hundvin
- Department of BiotechnologyNorwegian University of Science and TechnologyTrondheimN‐7491Norway
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10
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Asrani P, Seebohm G, Stoll R. Potassium viroporins as model systems for understanding eukaryotic ion channel behaviour. Virus Res 2022; 320:198903. [PMID: 36037849 DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2022.198903] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2022] [Revised: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Ion channels are membrane proteins essential for a plethora of cellular functions including maintaining cell shape, ion homeostasis, cardiac rhythm and action potential in neurons. The complexity and often extensive structure of eukaryotic membrane proteins makes it difficult to understand their basic biological regulation. Therefore, this article suggests, viroporins - the miniature versions of eukaryotic protein homologs from viruses - might serve as model systems to provide insights into behaviour of eukaryotic ion channels in general. The structural requirements for correct assembly of the channel along with the basic functional properties of a K+ channel exist in the minimal design of the viral K+ channels from two viruses, Chlorella virus (Kcv) and Ectocarpus siliculosus virus (Kesv). These small viral proteins readily assemble into tetramers and they sort in cells to distinct target membranes. When these viruses-encoded channels are expressed into the mammalian cells, they utilise their protein machinery and hence can serve as excellent tools to study the cells protein sorting machinery. This combination of small size and robust function makes viral K+ channels a valuable model system for detection of basic structure-function correlations. It is believed that molecular and physiochemical analyses of these viroporins may serve as basis for the development of inhibitors or modulators to ion channel activity for targeting ion channel diseases - so called channelopathies. Therefore, it may provide a potential different scope for molecular pharmacology studies aiming at novel and innovative therapeutics associated with channel related diseases. This article reviews the structural and functional properties of Kcv and Kesv upon expression in mammalian cells and Xenopus oocytes. The mechanisms behind differential protein sorting in Kcv and Kesv are also thoroughly discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Purva Asrani
- Biomolecular Spectroscopy and RUBiospec|NMR, Faculty of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ruhr University of Bochum, Bochum D-44780, Germany
| | - Guiscard Seebohm
- Institute for Genetics of Heart Diseases (IfGH), Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, University Hospital Münster, Münster D-48149, Germany
| | - Raphael Stoll
- Biomolecular Spectroscopy and RUBiospec|NMR, Faculty of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ruhr University of Bochum, Bochum D-44780, Germany.
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11
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Komar AA. From Alpha to Beta - a co-translational way to fold? Cell Cycle 2022; 21:1663-1666. [PMID: 35400283 PMCID: PMC9302521 DOI: 10.1080/15384101.2022.2062186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2022] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Protein folding in the cell is largely a co-translational process occurring during protein synthesis on the ribosome. It has become evident that co-translational folding is characteristic to almost every protein in the cell of pro- and eukaryotic origin that are single and multidomain, single and multisubunit, cytosolic, secretory and membrane. Co-translational protein folding begins very early during the process of polypeptide chain synthesis on the ribosome, with some secondary structure elements forming inside the ribosomal tunnel and some tertiary structures forming inside the vestibule (lower/wider) region of the ribosomal exit tunnel. However, many details of co-translational folding remains incompletely understood. New data show that folding of a β-barrel protein begins with formation of an α-helix inside the ribosome that rearranges into a β-hairpin structure as the growing peptide reaches the wider/vestibule region of the exit tunnel. While it was previously suggested that such scenario can take place on the ribosome, the new data provide the first experimental evidence in support of this notion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anton A. Komar
- Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease and Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OhioUSA
- Department of Biochemistry and Center for Rna Science and Therapeutics, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OhioUSA
- Genomic Medicine Institute, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA
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12
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A Structural Potential of Rare Trinucleotide Repeat Tracts in RNA. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23105850. [PMID: 35628656 PMCID: PMC9144543 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23105850] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2022] [Revised: 05/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Among types of trinucleotide repeats, there is some disproportion in the frequency of their occurrence in the human exome. This research presents new data describing the folding and thermodynamic stability of short, tandem RNA repeats of 23 types, focusing on the rare, yet poorly analyzed ones. UV-melting experiments included the presence of PEG or potassium and magnesium ions to determine their effect on the stability of RNA repeats structures. Rare repeats predominantly stayed single-stranded but had the potential for base pairing with other partially complementary repeat tracts. A coexistence of suitably complementary repeat types in a single RNA creates opportunities for interaction in the context of the secondary structure of RNA. We searched the human transcriptome for model RNAs in which different, particularly rare trinucleotide repeats coexist and selected the GABRA4 and CHIC1 RNAs to study intramolecular interactions between the repeat tracts that they contain. In vitro secondary structure probing results showed that the UAA and UUG repeat tracts, present in GABRA4 3' UTR, form a double helix, which separates one of its structural domains. For the RNA CHIC1 ORF fragment containing four short AGG repeat tracts and the CGU tract, we proved the formation of quadruplexes that blocked reverse transcription.
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Fedorov AN. Biosynthetic Protein Folding and Molecular Chaperons. BIOCHEMISTRY. BIOKHIMIIA 2022; 87:S128-S19. [PMID: 35501992 DOI: 10.1134/s0006297922140115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The problem of linear polypeptide chain folding into a unique tertiary structure is one of the fundamental scientific challenges. The process of folding cannot be fully understood without its biological context, especially for big multidomain and multisubunit proteins. The principal features of biosynthetic folding are co-translational folding of growing nascent polypeptide chains and involvement of molecular chaperones in the process. The review summarizes available data on the early events of nascent chain folding, as well as on later advanced steps, including formation of elements of native structure. The relationship between the non-uniformity of translation rate and folding of the growing polypeptide is discussed. The results of studies on the effect of biosynthetic folding features on the parameters of folding as a physical process, its kinetics and mechanisms, are presented. Current understanding and hypotheses on the relationship of biosynthetic folding with the fundamental physical parameters and current views on polypeptide folding in the context of energy landscapes are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexey N Fedorov
- Federal Research Center "Fundamentals of Biotechnology", Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 119071, Russia.
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14
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Bornewasser L, Domnick C, Kath-Schorr S. Stronger together for in-cell translation: natural and unnatural base modified mRNA. Chem Sci 2022; 13:4753-4761. [PMID: 35655897 PMCID: PMC9067582 DOI: 10.1039/d2sc00670g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2022] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The preparation of highly modified mRNAs and visualization of their cellular distribution are challenging. We report in-cell application of in vitro transcribed mRNA containing natural base modifications and site-specifically introduced artificial nucleotides. Click chemistry on mRNA allows visualization in cells with excellent signal intensities. While non-specific introduction of reporter groups often leads to loss in mRNA functionality, we combined the benefits from site-specificity in the 3′-UTR incorporated unnatural nucleotides with the improved translation efficiency of the natural base modifications Ψ and 5mC. A series of experiments is described to observe, quantify and verify mRNA functionality. This approach represents a new way to visualize mRNA delivery into cells and monitor its spread on a cellular level and translation efficiency. We observed increased protein expression from this twofold chemically modified, artificial mRNA counterbalancing a reduced transfection rate. This synergetic effect can be exploited as a powerful tool for future research on mRNA therapeutics. Introducing unnatural base modifications site-specifically into the 3′-UTR of an mRNA bearing natural base modifications allows efficient visualization in cells by click chemistry. An enhanced protein expression in cells is observed from this twofold modified mRNA.![]()
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa Bornewasser
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Cologne Greinstrasse 4 50939 Cologne Germany
| | - Christof Domnick
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Cologne Greinstrasse 4 50939 Cologne Germany
| | - Stephanie Kath-Schorr
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Cologne Greinstrasse 4 50939 Cologne Germany
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15
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Rajasekaran N, Kaiser CM. Co-Translational Folding of Multi-Domain Proteins. Front Mol Biosci 2022; 9:869027. [PMID: 35517860 PMCID: PMC9065291 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2022.869027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The majority of proteins in nature are composed of multiple domains connected in a single polypeptide. How these long sequences fold into functional structures without forming toxic misfolds or aggregates is poorly understood. Their folding is inextricably linked to protein synthesis and interactions with cellular machinery, making mechanistic studies challenging. Recent progress has revealed critical features of multi-domain protein folding in isolation and in the context of translation by the ribosome. In this review, we discuss challenges and progress in understanding multi-domain protein folding, and highlight how molecular interactions shape folding and misfolding pathways. With the development of new approaches and model systems, the stage is now set for mechanistically exploring the folding of large multi-domain proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Christian M. Kaiser
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States,Department of Biophysics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States,*Correspondence: Christian M. Kaiser,
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16
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Svitkin YV, Gingras AC, Sonenberg N. Membrane-dependent relief of translation elongation arrest on pseudouridine- and N1-methyl-pseudouridine-modified mRNAs. Nucleic Acids Res 2021; 50:7202-7215. [PMID: 34933339 PMCID: PMC9303281 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkab1241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2021] [Revised: 11/12/2021] [Accepted: 12/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Expression of therapeutically important proteins has benefited dramatically from the advent of chemically modified mRNAs that feature decreased lability and immunogenicity. This had a momentous effect on the rapid development of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines. Incorporation of the naturally occurring pseudouridine (Ψ) or N1-methyl-pseudouridine (N1mΨ) into in vitro transcribed mRNAs prevents the activation of unwanted immune responses by blocking eIF2α phosphorylation, which inhibits translation. Here, we report that Ψs in luciferase (Luc) mRNA exacerbate translation pausing in nuclease-untreated rabbit reticulocyte lysate (uRRL) and promote the formation of high-order-ribosome structures. The major deceleration of elongation occurs at the Ψ-rich nucleotides 1294-1326 of Ψ-Luc mRNA and results in premature termination of translation. The impairment of translation is mainly due to the shortage of membranous components. Supplementing uRRL with canine microsomal membranes (CMMs) relaxes the impediments to ribosome movement, resolves collided ribosomes, and greatly enhances full-size luciferase production. CMMs also strongly stimulated an extremely inefficient translation of N1mΨ-Luc mRNA in uRRL. Evidence is presented that translational pausing can promote membrane recruitment of polysomes with nascent polypeptides that lack a signal sequence. Our results highlight an underappreciated role of membrane binding to polysomes in the prevention of ribosome collision and premature release of nascent polypeptides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuri V Svitkin
- Department of Biochemistry, McGill University, Montréal, Québec H3A 1A3, Canada.,Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Institute, Montréal, Québec H3A 1A3, Canada
| | - Anne-Claude Gingras
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Sinai Health System, and Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, M5G 1×5, Canada
| | - Nahum Sonenberg
- Department of Biochemistry, McGill University, Montréal, Québec H3A 1A3, Canada.,Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Institute, Montréal, Québec H3A 1A3, Canada
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17
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Perach M, Zafrir Z, Tuller T, Lewinson O. Identification of conserved slow codons that are important for protein expression and function. RNA Biol 2021; 18:2296-2307. [PMID: 33691590 PMCID: PMC8632084 DOI: 10.1080/15476286.2021.1901185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2020] [Revised: 02/28/2021] [Accepted: 03/06/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022] Open
Abstract
ABSTRASTDue to the redundancy of the genetic code most amino acids are encoded by several 'synonymous' codons. These codons are used unevenly, and each organism demonstrates its own unique codon usage bias, where the 'preferred' codons are associated with tRNAs that are found in high concentrations. Therefore, for decades, the prevailing view had been that preferred and non-preferred codons are linked to high or slow translation rates, respectively.However, this simplified view is contrasted by the frequent failures of codon-optimization efforts and by evidence of non-preferred (i.e. 'slow') codons having specific roles important for efficient production of functional proteins. One such specific role of slower codons is the regulation of co-translational protein folding, a complex biophysical process that is very challenging to model or to measure.Here, we combined a genome-wide approach with experiments to investigate the role of slow codons in protein production and co-translational folding. We analysed homologous gene groups from divergent bacteria and identified positions of inter-species conservation of bias towards slow codons. We then generated mutants where the conserved slow codons are substituted with 'fast' ones, and experimentally studied the effects of these codon substitutions. Using cellular and biochemical approaches we find that at certain locations, slow-to-fast codon substitutions reduce protein expression, increase protein aggregation, and impair protein function.This report provides an approach for identifying functionally relevant regions with slower codons and demonstrates that such codons are important for protein expression and function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michal Perach
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, the Bruce and Ruth Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, The Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Zohar Zafrir
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Tamir Tuller
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Oded Lewinson
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, the Bruce and Ruth Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, The Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
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18
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Leininger SE, Rodriguez J, Vu QV, Jiang Y, Li MS, Deutsch C, O'Brien EP. Ribosome Elongation Kinetics of Consecutively Charged Residues Are Coupled to Electrostatic Force. Biochemistry 2021; 60:3223-3235. [PMID: 34652913 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.1c00507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
The speed of protein synthesis can dramatically change when consecutively charged residues are incorporated into an elongating nascent protein by the ribosome. The molecular origins of this class of allosteric coupling remain unknown. We demonstrate, using multiscale simulations, that positively charged residues generate large forces that move the P-site amino acid away from the A-site amino acid. Negatively charged residues generate forces of similar magnitude but move the A- and P-sites closer together. These conformational changes, respectively, increase and decrease the transition state barrier height to peptide bond formation, explaining how charged residues mechanochemically alter translation speed. This mechanochemical mechanism is consistent with in vivo ribosome profiling data exhibiting proportionality between translation speed and the number of charged residues, experimental data characterizing nascent chain conformations, and a previously published cryo-EM structure of a ribosome-nascent chain complex containing consecutive lysines. These results expand the role of mechanochemistry in translation and provide a framework for interpreting experimental results on translation speed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E Leininger
- Department of Chemistry, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Judith Rodriguez
- Bioinformatics and Genomics Graduate Program, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Quyen V Vu
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw 02-668, Poland
| | - Yang Jiang
- Department of Chemistry, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Mai Suan Li
- Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw 02-668, Poland.,Institute for Computational Sciences and Technology, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam
| | - Carol Deutsch
- Department of Physiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
| | - Edward P O'Brien
- Department of Chemistry, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Bioinformatics and Genomics Graduate Program, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Institute for Computational and Data Sciences, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
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19
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Timsit Y, Grégoire SP. Towards the Idea of Molecular Brains. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms222111868. [PMID: 34769300 PMCID: PMC8584932 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222111868] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2021] [Revised: 10/24/2021] [Accepted: 10/28/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
How can single cells without nervous systems perform complex behaviours such as habituation, associative learning and decision making, which are considered the hallmark of animals with a brain? Are there molecular systems that underlie cognitive properties equivalent to those of the brain? This review follows the development of the idea of molecular brains from Darwin’s “root brain hypothesis”, through bacterial chemotaxis, to the recent discovery of neuron-like r-protein networks in the ribosome. By combining a structural biology view with a Bayesian brain approach, this review explores the evolutionary labyrinth of information processing systems across scales. Ribosomal protein networks open a window into what were probably the earliest signalling systems to emerge before the radiation of the three kingdoms. While ribosomal networks are characterised by long-lasting interactions between their protein nodes, cell signalling networks are essentially based on transient interactions. As a corollary, while signals propagated in persistent networks may be ephemeral, networks whose interactions are transient constrain signals diffusing into the cytoplasm to be durable in time, such as post-translational modifications of proteins or second messenger synthesis. The duration and nature of the signals, in turn, implies different mechanisms for the integration of multiple signals and decision making. Evolution then reinvented networks with persistent interactions with the development of nervous systems in metazoans. Ribosomal protein networks and simple nervous systems display architectural and functional analogies whose comparison could suggest scale invariance in information processing. At the molecular level, the significant complexification of eukaryotic ribosomal protein networks is associated with a burst in the acquisition of new conserved aromatic amino acids. Knowing that aromatic residues play a critical role in allosteric receptors and channels, this observation suggests a general role of π systems and their interactions with charged amino acids in multiple signal integration and information processing. We think that these findings may provide the molecular basis for designing future computers with organic processors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Youri Timsit
- Aix Marseille Université, Université de Toulon, CNRS, IRD, MIO UM110, 13288 Marseille, France
- Research Federation for the Study of Global Ocean Systems Ecology and Evolution, FR2022/Tara GOSEE, 3 rue Michel-Ange, 75016 Paris, France
- Correspondence:
| | - Sergeant-Perthuis Grégoire
- Institut de Mathématiques de Jussieu—Paris Rive Gauche (IMJ-PRG), UMR 7586, CNRS-Université Paris Diderot, 75013 Paris, France;
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20
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Komar AA. A Code Within a Code: How Codons Fine-Tune Protein Folding in the Cell. BIOCHEMISTRY (MOSCOW) 2021; 86:976-991. [PMID: 34488574 DOI: 10.1134/s0006297921080083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The genetic code sets the correspondence between the sequence of a given nucleotide triplet in an mRNA molecule, called a codon, and the amino acid that is added to the growing polypeptide chain during protein synthesis. With four bases (A, G, U, and C), there are 64 possible triplet codons: 61 sense codons (encoding amino acids) and 3 nonsense codons (so-called, stop codons that define termination of translation). In most organisms, there are 20 common/standard amino acids used in protein synthesis; thus, the genetic code is redundant with most amino acids (with the exception of Met and Trp) are being encoded by more than one (synonymous) codon. Synonymous codons were initially presumed to have entirely equivalent functions, however, the finding that synonymous codons are not present at equal frequencies in mRNA suggested that the specific codon choice might have functional implications beyond coding for amino acid. Observation of nonequivalent use of codons in mRNAs implied a possibility of the existence of auxiliary information in the genetic code. Indeed, it has been found that genetic code contains several layers of such additional information and that synonymous codons are strategically placed within mRNAs to ensure a particular translation kinetics facilitating and fine-tuning co-translational protein folding in the cell via step-wise/sequential structuring of distinct regions of the polypeptide chain emerging from the ribosome at different points in time. This review summarizes key findings in the field that have identified the role of synonymous codons and their usage in protein folding in the cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anton A Komar
- Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease and Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA. .,Department of Biochemistry and Center for RNA Science and Therapeutics, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA.,Genomic Medicine Institute, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA.,DAPCEL, Inc., Cleveland, OH 44106, USA
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21
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Kisly I, Kattel C, Remme J, Tamm T. Luciferase-based reporter system for in vitro evaluation of elongation rate and processivity of ribosomes. Nucleic Acids Res 2021; 49:e59. [PMID: 33684199 PMCID: PMC8191769 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkab121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2020] [Revised: 02/09/2021] [Accepted: 02/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The elongation step of translation is a key contributor to the abundance, folding and quality of proteins and to the stability of mRNA. However, control over translation elongation has not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, a Renilla-firefly luciferase fusion reporter system was further developed to investigate the in vitro elongation rate and processivity of ribosomes independent of the initiation and termination steps. The reporter mRNA was constructed to contain a single ORF encoding in-frame Renilla luciferase, a specific domain moiety and firefly luciferase. Such a reporter structure enables the quantitative and individual evaluation of the synthesis of a specific domain. As a proof of principle, the synthesis of three protein domains of different lengths and structures was analyzed. Using a cell-free translation assay, both the elongation rate and processivity of ribosomes were shown to vary depending on the domain synthesized. Additionally, a stalling sequence consisting of ten rare arginine codons notably reduced the elongation rate and the processivity of the ribosomes. All these results are consistent with the previously known dynamics of elongation in vivo. Overall, the methodology presented in this report provides a framework for studying aspects that contribute to the elongation step of translation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivan Kisly
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
| | - Carolin Kattel
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
| | - Jaanus Remme
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
| | - Tiina Tamm
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
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22
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Postnikova OA, Uppal S, Huang W, Kane MA, Villasmil R, Rogozin IB, Poliakov E, Redmond TM. The Functional Consequences of the Novel Ribosomal Pausing Site in SARS-CoV-2 Spike Glycoprotein RNA. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:6490. [PMID: 34204305 PMCID: PMC8235447 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22126490] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2021] [Revised: 06/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 Spike glycoprotein (S protein) acquired a unique new 4 amino acid -PRRA- insertion sequence at amino acid residues (aa) 681-684 that forms a new furin cleavage site in S protein as well as several new glycosylation sites. We studied various statistical properties of the -PRRA- insertion at the RNA level (CCUCGGCGGGCA). The nucleotide composition and codon usage of this sequence are different from the rest of the SARS-CoV-2 genome. One of such features is two tandem CGG codons, although the CGG codon is the rarest codon in the SARS-CoV-2 genome. This suggests that the insertion sequence could cause ribosome pausing as the result of these rare codons. Due to population variants, the Nextstrain divergence measure of the CCU codon is extremely large. We cannot exclude that this divergence might affect host immune responses/effectiveness of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, possibilities awaiting further investigation. Our experimental studies show that the expression level of original RNA sequence "wildtype" spike protein is much lower than for codon-optimized spike protein in all studied cell lines. Interestingly, the original spike sequence produces a higher titer of pseudoviral particles and a higher level of infection. Further mutagenesis experiments suggest that this dual-effect insert, comprised of a combination of overlapping translation pausing and furin sites, has allowed SARS-CoV-2 to infect its new host (human) more readily. This underlines the importance of ribosome pausing to allow efficient regulation of protein expression and also of cotranslational subdomain folding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olga A. Postnikova
- Laboratory of Retinal Cell & Molecular Biology, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; (O.A.P.); (S.U.)
| | - Sheetal Uppal
- Laboratory of Retinal Cell & Molecular Biology, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; (O.A.P.); (S.U.)
| | - Weiliang Huang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy Mass Spectrometry Center, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA; (W.H.); (M.A.K.)
| | - Maureen A. Kane
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy Mass Spectrometry Center, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA; (W.H.); (M.A.K.)
| | - Rafael Villasmil
- Flow Cytometry Core Facility, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA;
| | - Igor B. Rogozin
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20894, USA
| | - Eugenia Poliakov
- Laboratory of Retinal Cell & Molecular Biology, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; (O.A.P.); (S.U.)
| | - T. Michael Redmond
- Laboratory of Retinal Cell & Molecular Biology, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; (O.A.P.); (S.U.)
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23
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Santoni D. The impact of codon choice on translation process in Saccharomyces cerevisiae: folding class, protein function and secondary structure. J Theor Biol 2021; 526:110806. [PMID: 34111456 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2021.110806] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2020] [Revised: 05/26/2021] [Accepted: 06/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The genetic code consists in a set of rules used by living organisms to translate genomic information, contained in genes, into proteins; every amino acid is coded by a set of nucleotide triplets or codons. We refer to codon choice as the choice of a given codon, among the synonymous available ones, to code a given amino acid occurrence. The aim of this work is to shed light on the pivotal role that codon choice plays in regulating the timing of translation process, through patterns of low and high translation efficiency codons. A translation efficiency value, namely codon score, was associated to each codon through a formula based on the number of tRNAs gene copies able to translate the given codon. By using codon scores, those k-mers of the proteome of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, showing low and high average scores associated to the correspondent codons, were computed. The analysis of distribution of both low and high average score k-mers clearly showed that, in particular for higher k-mer size, they occur much more than expected, strongly suggesting a functional role. Moreover performed analysis highlighted that significant k-mers preferentially occur in some protein folding classes, such as those containing alpha helices, and in some functional classes mainly involved in transcription process while codon choice seems to have a very low impact in proteins associated to energy production and metabolism. The relationship between secondary structures and significant k-mers was investigated, revealing that low score k-mers tend to preferentially occur in coil or close to coil regions and almost never in beta sheets, while high score k-mers preferentially occur in alpha helices, avoiding beta sheets, and close to coil regions for high k-mer sizes. Finally the analysis of distribution of significant codon patterns along the proteins highlighted a relevant enrichment of low average score k-mers at the 5' end of protein-coding sequences in the region from 5th to 25th amino acid.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniele Santoni
- Institute for System Analysis and Computer Science "Antonio Ruberti", National Research Council of Italy, Via dei Taurini 19, Rome 00185, Italy.
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24
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Chyżyńska K, Labun K, Jones C, Grellscheid SN, Valen E. Deep conservation of ribosome stall sites across RNA processing genes. NAR Genom Bioinform 2021; 3:lqab038. [PMID: 34056595 PMCID: PMC8152447 DOI: 10.1093/nargab/lqab038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2020] [Revised: 03/10/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The rate of translation can vary depending on the mRNA template. During the elongation phase the ribosome can transiently pause or permanently stall. A pause can provide the nascent protein with the time to fold or be transported, while stalling can serve as quality control and trigger degradation of aberrant mRNA and peptide. Ribosome profiling has allowed for the genome-wide detection of such pauses and stalls, but due to library-specific biases, these predictions are often unreliable. Here, we take advantage of the deep conservation of protein synthesis machinery, hypothesizing that similar conservation could exist for functionally important locations of ribosome slowdown, here collectively called stall sites. We analyze multiple ribosome profiling datasets from phylogenetically diverse eukaryotes: yeast, fruit fly, zebrafish, mouse and human to identify conserved stall sites. We find thousands of stall sites across multiple species, with the enrichment of proline, glycine and negatively charged amino acids around conserved stalling. Many of the sites are found in RNA processing genes, suggesting that stalling might have a conserved role in RNA metabolism. In summary, our results provide a rich resource for the study of conserved stalling and indicate possible roles of stalling in gene regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katarzyna Chyżyńska
- Computational Biology Unit, Department of Informatics, University of Bergen, Bergen 5020, Norway
| | - Kornel Labun
- Computational Biology Unit, Department of Informatics, University of Bergen, Bergen 5020, Norway
| | - Carl Jones
- Computational Biology Unit, Department of Informatics, University of Bergen, Bergen 5020, Norway
| | - Sushma N Grellscheid
- Computational Biology Unit, Department of Informatics, University of Bergen, Bergen 5020, Norway
| | - Eivind Valen
- Computational Biology Unit, Department of Informatics, University of Bergen, Bergen 5020, Norway
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25
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Engel AJ, Kithil M, Langhans M, Rauh O, Cartolano M, Van Etten JL, Moroni A, Thiel G. Codon Bias Can Determine Sorting of a Potassium Channel Protein. Cells 2021; 10:cells10051128. [PMID: 34066987 PMCID: PMC8151079 DOI: 10.3390/cells10051128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2021] [Revised: 04/30/2021] [Accepted: 05/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Due to the redundancy of the genetic code most amino acids are encoded by multiple synonymous codons. It has been proposed that a biased frequency of synonymous codons can affect the function of proteins by modulating distinct steps in transcription, translation and folding. Here, we use two similar prototype K+ channels as model systems to examine whether codon choice has an impact on protein sorting. By monitoring transient expression of GFP-tagged channels in mammalian cells, we find that one of the two channels is sorted in a codon and cell cycle-dependent manner either to mitochondria or the secretory pathway. The data establish that a gene with either rare or frequent codons serves, together with a cell-state-dependent decoding mechanism, as a secondary code for sorting intracellular membrane proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anja J. Engel
- Membrane Biophysics, Department of Biology, Technische Universität Darmstadt, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany; (A.J.E.); (M.K.); (M.L.); (O.R.); (M.C.)
| | - Marina Kithil
- Membrane Biophysics, Department of Biology, Technische Universität Darmstadt, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany; (A.J.E.); (M.K.); (M.L.); (O.R.); (M.C.)
| | - Markus Langhans
- Membrane Biophysics, Department of Biology, Technische Universität Darmstadt, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany; (A.J.E.); (M.K.); (M.L.); (O.R.); (M.C.)
| | - Oliver Rauh
- Membrane Biophysics, Department of Biology, Technische Universität Darmstadt, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany; (A.J.E.); (M.K.); (M.L.); (O.R.); (M.C.)
| | - Matea Cartolano
- Membrane Biophysics, Department of Biology, Technische Universität Darmstadt, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany; (A.J.E.); (M.K.); (M.L.); (O.R.); (M.C.)
| | - James L. Van Etten
- Nebraska Center for Virology, Department of Plant Pathology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA;
| | - Anna Moroni
- Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20133 Milan, Italy;
| | - Gerhard Thiel
- Membrane Biophysics, Department of Biology, Technische Universität Darmstadt, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany; (A.J.E.); (M.K.); (M.L.); (O.R.); (M.C.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +49-61511621940
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26
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Pintó RM, Bosch A. The codon usage code for co-translational folding of viral capsids. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:6259148. [PMID: 33914886 PMCID: PMC8410136 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Codon bias is common to all organisms and is the result of mutation, drift, and selection. Selection for the efficiency and accuracy of translation is well recognized as a factor shaping the codon usage. In contrast, fewer studies report the control of the rate of translation as an additional selective pressure influencing the codon usage of an organism. Experimental molecular evolution using RNA virus populations is a powerful tool for the identification of mechanisms underlying the codon bias. Indeed, the role of deoptimized codons on the cotranslational folding has been proven in the capsids of two fecal-orally transmitted picornaviruses, poliovirus, and the hepatitis A virus, emphasizing the role of the frequency of codons in determining the phenotype. However, most studies on virus codon usage rely only on computational analyses, and experimental studies should be encouraged to clearly define the role of selection on codon evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosa M Pintó
- Enteric Virus Laboratory, Section of Microbiology, Virology and Biotechnology, Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, School of Biology, and Institute of Nutrition and Safety, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Albert Bosch
- Enteric Virus Laboratory, Section of Microbiology, Virology and Biotechnology, Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, School of Biology, and Institute of Nutrition and Safety, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
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27
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Li R, Li H, Feng X, Zhao R, Cheng Y. Study on the Influence of mRNA, the Genetic Language, on Protein Folding Rates. Front Genet 2021; 12:635250. [PMID: 33889178 PMCID: PMC8056030 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2021.635250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 03/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Many works have reported that protein folding rates are influenced by the characteristics of amino acid sequences and protein structures. However, few reports on the problem of whether the corresponding mRNA sequences are related to the protein folding rates can be found. An mRNA sequence is regarded as a kind of genetic language, and its vocabulary and phraseology must provide influential information regarding the protein folding rate. In the present work, linear regressions on the parameters of the vocabulary and phraseology of mRNA sequences and the corresponding protein folding rates were analyzed. The results indicated that D2 (the adjacent base-related information redundancy) values and the GC content values of the corresponding mRNA sequences exhibit significant negative relations with the protein folding rates, but D1 (the single base information redundancy) values exhibit significant positive relations with the protein folding rates. In addition, the results show that the relationships between the parameters of the genetic language and the corresponding protein folding rates are obviously different for different protein groups. Some useful parameters that are related to protein folding rates were found. The results indicate that when predicting protein folding rates, the information from protein structures and their amino acid sequences is insufficient, and some information for regulating the protein folding rates must be derived from the mRNA sequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruifang Li
- College of Physics and Electronic Information, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot, China
| | - Hong Li
- School of Physical Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, China
| | - Xue Feng
- College of Physics and Electronic Information, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot, China
| | - Ruifeng Zhao
- College of Physics and Electronic Information, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot, China
| | - Yongxia Cheng
- College of Physics and Electronic Information, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot, China
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28
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Matsumoto S, Sugimoto N. New Insights into the Functions of Nucleic Acids Controlled by Cellular Microenvironments. Top Curr Chem (Cham) 2021; 379:17. [PMID: 33782792 DOI: 10.1007/s41061-021-00329-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2020] [Accepted: 03/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The right-handed double-helical B-form structure (B-form duplex) has been widely recognized as the canonical structure of nucleic acids since it was first proposed by James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953. This B-form duplex model has a monochronic and static structure and codes genetic information within a sequence. Interestingly, DNA and RNA can form various non-canonical structures, such as hairpin loops, left-handed helices, triplexes, tetraplexes of G-quadruplex and i-motif, and branched junctions, in addition to the canonical structure. The formation of non-canonical structures depends not only on sequence but also on the surrounding environment. Importantly, these non-canonical structures may exhibit a wide variety of biological roles by changing their structures and stabilities in response to the surrounding environments, which undergo vast changes at specific locations and at specific times in cells. Here, we review recent progress regarding the interesting behaviors and functions of nucleic acids controlled by molecularly crowded cellular conditions. New insights gained from recent studies suggest that nucleic acids not only code genetic information in sequences but also have unknown functions regarding their structures and stabilities through drastic structural changes in cellular environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saki Matsumoto
- Frontier Institute for Biomolecular Engineering Research (FIBER), Konan University, 7-1-20 Minatojima-Minamimachi, Kobe, 650-0047, Japan
| | - Naoki Sugimoto
- Frontier Institute for Biomolecular Engineering Research (FIBER), Konan University, 7-1-20 Minatojima-Minamimachi, Kobe, 650-0047, Japan. .,Graduate School of Frontiers of Innovative Research in Science and Technology (FIRST), Konan University, 7-1-20 Minatojima-Minamimachi, Kobe, 650-0047, Japan.
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29
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Saric M, Eisoldt L, Döring V, Scheibel T. Interplay of Different Major Ampullate Spidroins during Assembly and Implications for Fiber Mechanics. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2021; 33:e2006499. [PMID: 33496360 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202006499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2020] [Revised: 12/17/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Major ampullate (MA) spider silk has fascinating mechanical properties combining strength and elasticity. All known natural MA silks contain at least two or more different spidroins; however, it is unknown why and if there is any interplay in the spinning dope. Here, two different spidroins from Araneus diadematus are co-produced in Escherichia coli to study the possible dimerization and effects thereof on the mechanical properties of fibers. During the production of the two spidroins, a mixture of homo- and heterodimers is formed triggered by the carboxyl-terminal domains. Interestingly, homodimeric species of the individual spidroins self-assemble differently in comparison to heterodimers, and stoichiometric mixtures of homo- and heterodimers yield spidroin networks upon assembly with huge impact on fiber mechanics upon spinning. The obtained results provide the basis for man-made tuning of spinning dopes to yield high-performance fibers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Merisa Saric
- Lehrstuhl Biomaterialien, Universität Bayreuth, Prof-Rüdiger-Bormann-Str. 1, Bayreuth, 95447, Germany
| | - Lukas Eisoldt
- Lehrstuhl Biomaterialien, Universität Bayreuth, Prof-Rüdiger-Bormann-Str. 1, Bayreuth, 95447, Germany
| | - Volker Döring
- Lehrstuhl Biomaterialien, Universität Bayreuth, Prof-Rüdiger-Bormann-Str. 1, Bayreuth, 95447, Germany
| | - Thomas Scheibel
- Lehrstuhl Biomaterialien, Universität Bayreuth, Prof-Rüdiger-Bormann-Str. 1, Bayreuth, 95447, Germany
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30
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Suvlu D, Thirumalai D, Rasaiah JC. Water-Mediated Interactions Determine Helix Formation of Peptides in Open Nanotubes. J Phys Chem B 2021; 125:817-824. [PMID: 33464101 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.0c10178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Water-mediated interactions (WMIs) play diverse roles in molecular biology. They are particularly relevant in geometrically confined spaces such as the interior of the chaperonin, at the interface between ligands and their binding partners, and in the ribosome tunnel. Inspired in part by the geometry of the ribosome tunnel, we consider confinement effects on the stability of peptides. We describe results from replica exchange molecular dynamics simulations of a system containing a 23-alanine or 23-serine polypeptide confined to nonpolar and polar nanotubes in the gas phase and when open to a water reservoir. We quantify the effect of water in determining the preferred conformational states of these polypeptides by calculating the difference in the solvation free energy for the helix and coil states in the open nanotube in the two phases. Our simulations reveal several possibilities. We find that nanoscopic confinement preferentially stabilizes the helical state of polypeptides with hydrophobic side chains, which is explained by the entropic stabilization mechanism proposed on the basis of polymer physics. Polypeptide chains with hydrophilic side chains can adopt helical structures within nanotubes, but helix formation is sensitive to the nature of the nanotube due to WMIs. We elaborate on the potential implications of our findings to the stability of peptides in the ribosome tunnel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dylan Suvlu
- University of Maine, Orono, Maine 04469, United States
| | - D Thirumalai
- The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, United States
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31
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DeKeyser JM, Thompson CH, George AL. Cryptic prokaryotic promoters explain instability of recombinant neuronal sodium channels in bacteria. J Biol Chem 2021; 296:100298. [PMID: 33460646 PMCID: PMC7948969 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2021.100298] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2020] [Revised: 01/09/2021] [Accepted: 01/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Mutations in genes encoding the human-brain-expressed voltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels NaV1.1, NaV1.2, and NaV1.6 are associated with a variety of human diseases including epilepsy, autism spectrum disorder, familial migraine, and other neurodevelopmental disorders. A major obstacle hindering investigations of the functional consequences of brain NaV channel mutations is an unexplained instability of the corresponding recombinant complementary DNA (cDNA) when propagated in commonly used bacterial strains manifested by high spontaneous rates of mutation. Here, using a combination of in silico analysis, random and site-directed mutagenesis, we investigated the cause for instability of human NaV1.1 cDNA. We identified nucleotide sequences within the NaV1.1 coding region that resemble prokaryotic promoter-like elements, which are presumed to drive transcription of translationally toxic mRNAs in bacteria as the cause of the instability. We further demonstrated that mutations disrupting these elements mitigate the instability. Extending these observations, we generated full-length human NaV1.1, NaV1.2, and NaV1.6 plasmids using one or two introns that interrupt the latent reading frames along with a minimum number of silent nucleotide changes that achieved stable propagation in bacteria. Expression of the stabilized sequences in cultured mammalian cells resulted in functional NaV channels with properties that matched their parental constructs. Our findings explain a widely observed instability of recombinant neuronal human NaV channels, and we describe re-engineered plasmids that attenuate this problem.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Marc DeKeyser
- Department of Pharmacology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Christopher H Thompson
- Department of Pharmacology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Alfred L George
- Department of Pharmacology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
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32
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Samatova E, Daberger J, Liutkute M, Rodnina MV. Translational Control by Ribosome Pausing in Bacteria: How a Non-uniform Pace of Translation Affects Protein Production and Folding. Front Microbiol 2021; 11:619430. [PMID: 33505387 PMCID: PMC7829197 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.619430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Accepted: 12/11/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Protein homeostasis of bacterial cells is maintained by coordinated processes of protein production, folding, and degradation. Translational efficiency of a given mRNA depends on how often the ribosomes initiate synthesis of a new polypeptide and how quickly they read the coding sequence to produce a full-length protein. The pace of ribosomes along the mRNA is not uniform: periods of rapid synthesis are separated by pauses. Here, we summarize recent evidence on how ribosome pausing affects translational efficiency and protein folding. We discuss the factors that slow down translation elongation and affect the quality of the newly synthesized protein. Ribosome pausing emerges as important factor contributing to the regulatory programs that ensure the quality of the proteome and integrate the cellular and environmental cues into regulatory circuits of the cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ekaterina Samatova
- Department of Physical Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Jan Daberger
- Department of Physical Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Marija Liutkute
- Department of Physical Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Marina V Rodnina
- Department of Physical Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany
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33
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Sarvari P, Ingram D, Stan GB. A Modelling Framework Linking Resource-Based Stochastic Translation to the Optimal Design of Synthetic Constructs. BIOLOGY 2021; 10:biology10010037. [PMID: 33430483 PMCID: PMC7826857 DOI: 10.3390/biology10010037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2020] [Revised: 12/26/2020] [Accepted: 12/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary In synthetic biology, it is commonplace to design and insert gene expression constructs into cells for the production of useful proteins. In order to maximise production yield, it is useful to predict the performance of these “engineered cells” in advance of conducting experiments. This is typically a complex task, which in recent years has motivated the use of “whole-cell models” (WCMs) that act as computational tools for predicting different aspects of cell growth. Many useful WCMs exist, however a common problem is their over-simplification of ribosome movement on mRNA transcripts during translation. WCMs typically don’t consider that, for constructs with inefficient (“slow”) codons, ribosomes can stall and form “traffic jams”, thereby becoming unavailable for translation of other proteins. To more accurately address these scenarios, we have built a computational framework that combines whole-cell modelling with a detailed account of ribosome movement on mRNA. We show how our framework can be used to link the modular design of a gene expression construct (via its promoter, ribosome binding site and codon composition) to protein yield during continuous cell culture, with a particular focus on how the optimal design can change over time in the presence or absence of “slow” codons. Abstract The effect of gene expression burden on engineered cells has motivated the use of “whole-cell models” (WCMs) that use shared cellular resources to predict how unnatural gene expression affects cell growth. A common problem with many WCMs is their inability to capture translation in sufficient detail to consider the impact of ribosomal queue formation on mRNA transcripts. To address this, we have built a “stochastic cell calculator” (StoCellAtor) that combines a modified TASEP with a stochastic implementation of an existing WCM. We show how our framework can be used to link a synthetic construct’s modular design (promoter, ribosome binding site (RBS) and codon composition) to protein yield during continuous culture, with a particular focus on the effects of low-efficiency codons and their impact on ribosomal queues. Through our analysis, we recover design principles previously established in our work on burden-sensing strategies, namely that changing promoter strength is often a more efficient way to increase protein yield than RBS strength. Importantly, however, we show how these design implications can change depending on both the duration of protein expression, and on the presence of ribosomal queues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Sarvari
- Quantitative and Computational Biology, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA;
| | - Duncan Ingram
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BU, UK;
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BU, UK
| | - Guy-Bart Stan
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BU, UK;
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BU, UK
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +44-020-7594-6375
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34
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Newaz K, Wright G, Piland J, Li J, Clark PL, Emrich SJ, Milenković T. Network analysis of synonymous codon usage. Bioinformatics 2020; 36:4876-4884. [PMID: 32609328 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btaa603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2019] [Revised: 05/05/2020] [Accepted: 06/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
MOTIVATION Most amino acids are encoded by multiple synonymous codons, some of which are used more rarely than others. Analyses of positions of such rare codons in protein sequences revealed that rare codons can impact co-translational protein folding and that positions of some rare codons are evolutionarily conserved. Analyses of their positions in protein 3-dimensional structures, which are richer in biochemical information than sequences alone, might further explain the role of rare codons in protein folding. RESULTS We model protein structures as networks and use network centrality to measure the structural position of an amino acid. We first validate that amino acids buried within the structural core are network-central, and those on the surface are not. Then, we study potential differences between network centralities and thus structural positions of amino acids encoded by conserved rare, non-conserved rare and commonly used codons. We find that in 84% of proteins, the three codon categories occupy significantly different structural positions. We examine protein groups showing different codon centrality trends, i.e. different relationships between structural positions of the three codon categories. We see several cases of all proteins from our data with some structural or functional property being in the same group. Also, we see a case of all proteins in some group having the same property. Our work shows that codon usage is linked to the final protein structure and thus possibly to co-translational protein folding. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION https://nd.edu/∼cone/CodonUsage/. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
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Affiliation(s)
- Khalique Newaz
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering.,Center for Network and Data Science.,Eck institute for Global Health
| | - Gabriel Wright
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering.,Eck institute for Global Health
| | - Jacob Piland
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering.,Center for Network and Data Science.,Eck institute for Global Health
| | - Jun Li
- Department of Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics
| | - Patricia L Clark
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Scott J Emrich
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - Tijana Milenković
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering.,Center for Network and Data Science.,Eck institute for Global Health
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35
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Bos I, Terenzi C, Sprakel J. Chemical Feedback in Templated Reaction-Assembly Networks. Macromolecules 2020; 53:10675-10685. [PMID: 33328693 PMCID: PMC7726899 DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.0c01915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2020] [Revised: 11/02/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Chemical feedback between building block synthesis and their subsequent supramolecular self-assembly into nanostructures has profound effects on assembly pathways. Nature harnesses feedback in reaction-assembly networks in a variety of scenarios including virion formation and protein folding. Also in nanomaterial synthesis, reaction-assembly networks have emerged as a promising control strategy to regulate assembly processes. Yet, how chemical feedback affects the fundamental pathways of structure formation remains unclear. Here, we unravel the pathways of a templated reaction-assembly network that couples a covalent polymerization to an electrostatic coassembly process. We show how the supramolecular staging of building blocks at a macromolecular template can accelerate the polymerization reaction and prevent the formation of kinetically trapped structures inherent to the process in the absence of feedback. Finally, we establish a predictive kinetic reaction model that quantitatively describes the pathways underlying these reaction-assembly networks. Our results shed light on the fundamental mechanisms by which chemical feedback can steer self-assembly reactions and can be used to rationally design new nanostructures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inge Bos
- Physical Chemistry
and Soft Matter, Wageningen University &
Research, Stippeneng
4, 6708 WE Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Camilla Terenzi
- Laboratory of Biophysics, Wageningen University & Research, Stippeneng 4, 6708
WE Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Joris Sprakel
- Physical Chemistry
and Soft Matter, Wageningen University &
Research, Stippeneng
4, 6708 WE Wageningen, The Netherlands
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36
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Ahmed N, Friedrich UA, Sormanni P, Ciryam P, Altman NS, Bukau B, Kramer G, O'Brien EP. Pairs of amino acids at the P- and A-sites of the ribosome predictably and causally modulate translation-elongation rates. J Mol Biol 2020; 432:166696. [PMID: 33152326 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2020.10.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2020] [Revised: 08/30/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Variation in translation-elongation kinetics along a transcript's coding sequence plays an important role in the maintenance of cellular protein homeostasis by regulating co-translational protein folding, localization, and maturation. Translation-elongation speed is influenced by molecular factors within mRNA and protein sequences. For example, the presence of proline in the ribosome's P- or A-site slows down translation, but the effect of other pairs of amino acids, in the context of all 400 possible pairs, has not been characterized. Here, we study Saccharomyces cerevisiae using a combination of bioinformatics, mutational experiments, and evolutionary analyses, and show that many different pairs of amino acids and their associated tRNA molecules predictably and causally encode translation rate information when these pairs are present in the A- and P-sites of the ribosome independent of other factors known to influence translation speed including mRNA structure, wobble base pairing, tripeptide motifs, positively charged upstream nascent chain residues, and cognate tRNA concentration. The fast-translating pairs of amino acids that we identify are enriched four-fold relative to the slow-translating pairs across Saccharomyces cerevisiae's proteome, while the slow-translating pairs are enriched downstream of domain boundaries. Thus, the chemical identity of amino acid pairs contributes to variability in translation rates, elongation kinetics are causally encoded in the primary structure of proteins, and signatures of evolutionary selection indicate their potential role in co-translational processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nabeel Ahmed
- Bioinformatics and Genomics Graduate Program, The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
| | - Ulrike A Friedrich
- Center for Molecular Biology of the Heidelberg University (ZMBH), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Pietro Sormanni
- Centre for Misfolding Diseases, Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1EW, UK
| | - Prajwal Ciryam
- Centre for Misfolding Diseases, Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1EW, UK
| | - Naomi S Altman
- Bioinformatics and Genomics Graduate Program, The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA; Department of Statistics, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA
| | - Bernd Bukau
- Center for Molecular Biology of the Heidelberg University (ZMBH), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Günter Kramer
- Center for Molecular Biology of the Heidelberg University (ZMBH), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Edward P O'Brien
- Bioinformatics and Genomics Graduate Program, The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA; Department of Chemistry, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA; Institute for Computational and Data Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
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Nonoptimal Codon Usage Is Critical for Protein Structure and Function of the Master General Amino Acid Control Regulator CPC-1. mBio 2020; 11:mBio.02605-20. [PMID: 33051373 PMCID: PMC7554675 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.02605-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Under amino acid starvation conditions, eukaryotic organisms activate a general amino acid control response. In Neurospora crassa, Cross Pathway Control Protein 1 (CPC-1), the ortholog of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae bZIP transcription factor GCN4, functions as the master regulator of the general amino acid control response. Codon usage biases are a universal feature of eukaryotic genomes and are critical for regulation of gene expression. Although codon usage has also been implicated in the regulation of protein structure and function, genetic evidence supporting this conclusion is very limited. Here, we show that Neurospora cpc-1 has a nonoptimal NNU-rich codon usage profile that contrasts with the strong NNC codon preference in the genome. Although substitution of the cpc-1 NNU codons with synonymous NNC codons elevated CPC-1 expression in Neurospora, it altered the CPC-1 degradation rate and abolished its amino acid starvation-induced protein stabilization. The codon-manipulated CPC-1 protein also exhibited different sensitivity to limited protease digestion. Furthermore, CPC-1 functions in rescuing the cell growth of the cpc-1 deletion mutant and activation of the expression of its target genes were impaired by the synonymous codon changes. Together, these results reveal the critical role of codon usage in regulation of CPC-1 expression and function and establish a genetic example of the importance of codon usage in protein folding.IMPORTANCE The general amino acid control response is critical for adaptation of organisms to amino acid starvation conditions. The preference to use certain synonymous codons is a universal feature of all genomes. Synonymous codon changes were previously thought to be silent mutations. In this study, we showed that the Neurospora cpc-1 gene has an unusual codon usage profile compared to other genes in the genome. We found that codon optimization of the cpc-1 gene without changing its amino acid sequence resulted in elevated CPC-1 expression, an altered protein degradation rate, and impaired protein functions due to changes in protein structure. Together, these results reveal the critical role of synonymous codon usage in regulation of CPC-1 expression and function and establish a genetic example of the importance of codon usage in protein structure.
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38
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Li R, Li H, Yang S, Feng X. The Influences of Palindromes in mRNA on Protein Folding Rates. Protein Pept Lett 2020; 27:303-312. [PMID: 31612810 DOI: 10.2174/0929866526666191014144015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2019] [Revised: 06/14/2019] [Accepted: 06/29/2019] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND It is currently believed that protein folding rates are influenced by protein structure, environment and temperature, amino acid sequence and so on. We have been working for long to determine whether and in what ways mRNA affects the protein folding rate. A large number of palindromes aroused our attention in our previous research. Whether these palindromes do have important influences on protein folding rates and what's the mechanism? Very few related studies are focused on these problems. OBJECTIVE In this article, our motivation is to find out if palindromes have important influences on protein folding rates and what's the mechanism. METHODS In this article, the parameters of the palindromes were defined and calculated, the linear regression analysis between the values of each parameter and the experimental protein folding rates were done. Furthermore, to compare the results of different kinds of proteins, proteins were classified into the two-state proteins and the multi-state proteins. For the two kinds of proteins, the above linear regression analysis were performed respectively. RESULTS Protein folding rates were negatively correlated to the palindrome frequencies for all proteins. An extremely significant negative linear correlation appeared in the relationship between palindrome densities and protein folding rates. And the repeatedly used bases by different palindromes simultaneously have an important effect on the relationship between palindrome density and protein folding rate. CONCLUSION The palindromes have important influences on protein folding rates, and the repeatedly used bases in different palindromes simultaneously play a key role in influencing the protein folding rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruifang Li
- College of Physics and Electronic Information, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot 010022, China
| | - Hong Li
- School of Physical Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, China
| | - Sarula Yang
- College of Physics and Electronic Information, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot 010022, China
| | - Xue Feng
- College of Physics and Electronic Information, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot 010022, China
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Liu Y. A code within the genetic code: codon usage regulates co-translational protein folding. Cell Commun Signal 2020; 18:145. [PMID: 32907610 PMCID: PMC7488015 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-020-00642-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2020] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The genetic code is degenerate, and most amino acids are encoded by two to six synonymous codons. Codon usage bias, the preference for certain synonymous codons, is a universal feature of all genomes examined. Synonymous codon mutations were previously thought to be silent; however, a growing body evidence now shows that codon usage regulates protein structure and gene expression through effects on co-translational protein folding, translation efficiency and accuracy, mRNA stability, and transcription. Codon usage regulates the speed of translation elongation, resulting in non-uniform ribosome decoding rates on mRNAs during translation that is adapted to co-translational protein folding process. Biochemical and genetic evidence demonstrate that codon usage plays an important role in regulating protein folding and function in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms. Certain protein structural types are more sensitive than others to the effects of codon usage on protein folding, and predicted intrinsically disordered domains are more prone to misfolding caused by codon usage changes than other domain types. Bioinformatic analyses revealed that gene codon usage correlates with different protein structures in diverse organisms, indicating the existence of a codon usage code for co-translational protein folding. This review focuses on recent literature on the role and mechanism of codon usage in regulating translation kinetics and co-translational protein folding. Video abstract
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi Liu
- Department of Physiology, ND13.214A, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX, 75390-9040, USA.
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40
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Ghosh K. (Almost) Everything in Cotranslational Folding Makes Sense in the Light of Evolution. Biophys J 2020; 119:1045-1047. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2020.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2020] [Revised: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
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Ghosh A, Williams LD, Pestov DG, Shcherbik N. Proteotoxic stress promotes entrapment of ribosomes and misfolded proteins in a shared cytosolic compartment. Nucleic Acids Res 2020; 48:3888-3905. [PMID: 32030400 PMCID: PMC7144922 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkaa068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2019] [Revised: 01/03/2020] [Accepted: 01/21/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Cells continuously monitor protein synthesis to prevent accumulation of aberrant polypeptides. Insufficient capacity of cellular degradative systems, chaperone shortage or high levels of mistranslation by ribosomes can result in proteotoxic stress and endanger proteostasis. One of the least explored reasons for mistranslation is the incorrect functioning of the ribosome itself. To understand how cells deal with ribosome malfunction, we introduced mutations in the Expansion Segment 7 (ES7L) of 25S rRNA that allowed the formation of mature, translationally active ribosomes but induced proteotoxic stress and compromised cell viability. The ES7L-mutated ribosomes escaped nonfunctional rRNA Decay (NRD) and remained stable. Remarkably, ES7L-mutated ribosomes showed increased segregation into cytoplasmic foci containing soluble misfolded proteins. This ribosome entrapment pathway, termed TRAP (Translational Relocalization with Aberrant Polypeptides), was generalizable beyond the ES7L mutation, as wild-type ribosomes also showed increased relocalization into the same compartments in cells exposed to proteotoxic stressors. We propose that during TRAP, assembled ribosomes associated with misfolded nascent chains move into cytoplasmic compartments enriched in factors that facilitate protein quality control. In addition, TRAP may help to keep translation at its peak efficiency by preventing malfunctioning ribosomes from active duty in translation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnab Ghosh
- Department for Cell Biology and Neuroscience, Rowan University, School of Osteopathic Medicine, 2 Medical Center Drive, Stratford, NJ 08084, USA
| | - Loren Dean Williams
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, 315 Ferst Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - Dimitri G Pestov
- Department for Cell Biology and Neuroscience, Rowan University, School of Osteopathic Medicine, 2 Medical Center Drive, Stratford, NJ 08084, USA
| | - Natalia Shcherbik
- Department for Cell Biology and Neuroscience, Rowan University, School of Osteopathic Medicine, 2 Medical Center Drive, Stratford, NJ 08084, USA
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Peeri M, Tuller T. High-resolution modeling of the selection on local mRNA folding strength in coding sequences across the tree of life. Genome Biol 2020; 21:63. [PMID: 32151272 PMCID: PMC7063772 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-020-01971-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2019] [Accepted: 02/22/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND mRNA can form local secondary structure within the protein-coding sequence, and the strength of this structure is thought to influence gene expression regulation. Previous studies suggest that secondary structure strength may be maintained under selection, but the details of this phenomenon are not well understood. RESULTS We perform a comprehensive study of the selection on local mRNA folding strengths considering variation between species across the tree of life. We show for the first time that local folding strength selection tends to follow a conserved characteristic profile in most phyla, with selection for weak folding at the two ends of the coding region and for strong folding elsewhere in the coding sequence, with an additional peak of selection for strong folding located downstream of the start codon. The strength of this pattern varies between species and organism groups, and we highlight contradicting cases. To better understand the underlying evolutionary process, we show that selection strengths in the different regions are strongly correlated, and report four factors which have a clear predictive effect on local mRNA folding selection within the coding sequence in different species. CONCLUSIONS The correlations observed between selection for local secondary structure strength in the different regions and with the four genomic and environmental factors suggest that they are shaped by the same evolutionary process throughout the coding sequence, and might be maintained under direct selection related to optimization of gene expression and specifically translation regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Peeri
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Tamir Tuller
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
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Simpson LJ, Tzima E, Reader JS. Mechanical Forces and Their Effect on the Ribosome and Protein Translation Machinery. Cells 2020; 9:cells9030650. [PMID: 32156009 PMCID: PMC7140433 DOI: 10.3390/cells9030650] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2020] [Revised: 03/03/2020] [Accepted: 03/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Mechanical forces acting on biological systems, at both the macroscopic and microscopic levels, play an important part in shaping cellular phenotypes. There is a growing realization that biomolecules that respond to force directly applied to them, or via mechano-sensitive signalling pathways, can produce profound changes to not only transcriptional pathways, but also in protein translation. Forces naturally occurring at the molecular level can impact the rate at which the bacterial ribosome translates messenger RNA (mRNA) transcripts and influence processes such as co-translational folding of a nascent protein as it exits the ribosome. In eukaryotes, force can also be transduced at the cellular level by the cytoskeleton, the cell’s internal filamentous network. The cytoskeleton closely associates with components of the translational machinery such as ribosomes and elongation factors and, as such, is a crucial determinant of localized protein translation. In this review we will give (1) a brief overview of protein translation in bacteria and eukaryotes and then discuss (2) how mechanical forces are directly involved with ribosomes during active protein synthesis and (3) how eukaryotic ribosomes and other protein translation machinery intimately associates with the mechanosensitive cytoskeleton network.
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Planson AG, Sauveplane V, Dervyn E, Jules M. Bacterial growth physiology and RNA metabolism. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-GENE REGULATORY MECHANISMS 2020; 1863:194502. [PMID: 32044462 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbagrm.2020.194502] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2019] [Revised: 01/17/2020] [Accepted: 02/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Bacteria are sophisticated systems with high capacity and flexibility to adapt to various environmental conditions. Each prokaryote however possesses a defined metabolic network, which sets its overall metabolic capacity, and therefore the maximal growth rate that can be reached. To achieve optimal growth, bacteria adopt various molecular strategies to optimally adjust gene expression and optimize resource allocation according to the nutrient availability. The resulting physiological changes are often accompanied by changes in the growth rate, and by global regulation of gene expression. The growth-rate-dependent variation of the abundances in the cellular machineries, together with condition-specific regulatory mechanisms, affect RNA metabolism and fate and pose a challenge for rational gene expression reengineering of synthetic circuits. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: RNA and gene control in bacteria, edited by Dr. M. Guillier and F. Repoila.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne-Gaëlle Planson
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, Micalis Institute, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France.
| | - Vincent Sauveplane
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, Micalis Institute, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France.
| | - Etienne Dervyn
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, Micalis Institute, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France.
| | - Matthieu Jules
- Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, Micalis Institute, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France.
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Cotranslational Folding of Proteins on the Ribosome. Biomolecules 2020; 10:biom10010097. [PMID: 31936054 PMCID: PMC7023365 DOI: 10.3390/biom10010097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2019] [Revised: 12/20/2019] [Accepted: 12/25/2019] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Many proteins in the cell fold cotranslationally within the restricted space of the polypeptide exit tunnel or at the surface of the ribosome. A growing body of evidence suggests that the ribosome can alter the folding trajectory in many different ways. In this review, we summarize the recent examples of how translation affects folding of single-domain, multiple-domain and oligomeric proteins. The vectorial nature of translation, the spatial constraints of the exit tunnel, and the electrostatic properties of the ribosome-nascent peptide complex define the onset of early folding events. The ribosome can facilitate protein compaction, induce the formation of intermediates that are not observed in solution, or delay the onset of folding. Examples of single-domain proteins suggest that early compaction events can define the folding pathway for some types of domain structures. Folding of multi-domain proteins proceeds in a domain-wise fashion, with each domain having its role in stabilizing or destabilizing neighboring domains. Finally, the assembly of protein complexes can also begin cotranslationally. In all these cases, the ribosome helps the nascent protein to attain a native fold and avoid the kinetic traps of misfolding.
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Novoa EM, Jungreis I, Jaillon O, Kellis M. Elucidation of Codon Usage Signatures across the Domains of Life. Mol Biol Evol 2020; 36:2328-2339. [PMID: 31220870 PMCID: PMC6759073 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msz124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Because of the degeneracy of the genetic code, multiple codons are translated into the same amino acid. Despite being “synonymous,” these codons are not equally used. Selective pressures are thought to drive the choice among synonymous codons within a genome, while GC content, which is typically attributed to mutational drift, is the major determinant of variation across species. Here, we find that in addition to GC content, interspecies codon usage signatures can also be detected. More specifically, we show that a single amino acid, arginine, is the major contributor to codon usage bias differences across domains of life. We then exploit this finding and show that domain-specific codon bias signatures can be used to classify a given sequence into its corresponding domain of life with high accuracy. We then wondered whether the inclusion of codon usage codon autocorrelation patterns, which reflects the nonrandom distribution of codon occurrences throughout a transcript, might improve the classification performance of our algorithm. However, we find that autocorrelation patterns are not domain-specific, and surprisingly, are unrelated to tRNA reusage, in contrast to previous reports. Instead, our results suggest that codon autocorrelation patterns are a by-product of codon optimality throughout a sequence, where highly expressed genes display autocorrelated “optimal” codons, whereas lowly expressed genes display autocorrelated “nonoptimal” codons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Maria Novoa
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Darlinghurst, NSW, Australia.,University of New South Wales Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Irwin Jungreis
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Olivier Jaillon
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Génomique Métabolique, Genoscope, Institut François Jacob, CEA, CNRS, Univ Evry, Université Paris-Saclay, Evry, France
| | - Manolis Kellis
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
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48
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Chiaruttini C, Guillier M. On the role of mRNA secondary structure in bacterial translation. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS-RNA 2019; 11:e1579. [PMID: 31760691 DOI: 10.1002/wrna.1579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2019] [Revised: 10/17/2019] [Accepted: 10/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Messenger RNA (mRNA) is no longer considered as a mere informational molecule whose sole function is to convey the genetic information specified by DNA to the ribosome. Beyond this primary function, mRNA also contains additional instructions that influence the way and the extent to which this message is translated by the ribosome into protein(s). Indeed, owing to its intrinsic propensity to quickly and dynamically fold and form higher order structures, mRNA exhibits a second layer of structural information specified by the sequence itself. Besides influencing transcription and mRNA stability, this additional information also affects translation, and more precisely the frequency of translation initiation, the choice of open reading frame by recoding, the elongation speed, and the folding of the nascent protein. Many studies in bacteria have shown that mRNA secondary structure participates to the rapid adaptation of these versatile organisms to changing environmental conditions by efficiently tuning translation in response to diverse signals, such as the presence of ligands, regulatory proteins, or small RNAs. This article is categorized under: Regulatory RNAs/RNAi/Riboswitches > Regulatory RNAs RNA Structure and Dynamics > Influence of RNA Structure in Biological Systems Translation > Translation Regulation.
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49
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Hunt R, Hettiarachchi G, Katneni U, Hernandez N, Holcomb D, Kames J, Alnifaidy R, Lin B, Hamasaki-Katagiri N, Wesley A, Kafri T, Morris C, Bouché L, Panico M, Schiller T, Ibla J, Bar H, Ismail A, Morris H, Komar A, Kimchi-Sarfaty C. A Single Synonymous Variant (c.354G>A [p.P118P]) in ADAMTS13 Confers Enhanced Specific Activity. Int J Mol Sci 2019; 20:ijms20225734. [PMID: 31731663 PMCID: PMC6888508 DOI: 10.3390/ijms20225734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2019] [Revised: 11/09/2019] [Accepted: 11/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Synonymous variants within coding regions may influence protein expression and function. We have previously reported increased protein expression levels ex vivo (~120% in comparison to wild-type) from a synonymous polymorphism variant, c.354G>A [p.P118P], of the ADAMTS13 gene, encoding a plasma protease responsible for von Willebrand Factor (VWF) degradation. In the current study, we investigated the potential mechanism(s) behind the increased protein expression levels from this variant and its effect on ADAMTS13 physico-chemical properties. Cell-free assays showed enhanced translation of the c.354G>A variant and the analysis of codon usage characteristics suggested that introduction of the frequently used codon/codon pair(s) may have been potentially responsible for this effect. Limited proteolysis, however, showed no substantial influence of altered translation on protein conformation. Analysis of post-translational modifications also showed no notable differences but identified three previously unreported glycosylation markers. Despite these similarities, p.P118P variant unexpectedly showed higher specific activity. Structural analysis using modeled interactions indicated that subtle conformational changes arising from altered translation kinetics could affect interactions between an exosite of ADAMTS13 and VWF resulting in altered specific activity. This report highlights how a single synonymous nucleotide variation can impact cellular expression and specific activity in the absence of measurable impact on protein structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan Hunt
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - Gaya Hettiarachchi
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - Upendra Katneni
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - Nancy Hernandez
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - David Holcomb
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - Jacob Kames
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - Redab Alnifaidy
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - Brian Lin
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - Nobuko Hamasaki-Katagiri
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - Aaron Wesley
- Gene Therapy Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
- Present Address: Department of Emergency Medicine, Banner University Medical Center, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA
| | - Tal Kafri
- Gene Therapy Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | | | - Laura Bouché
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UK
- Present Address: Antikor Biopharma Ltd., Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst, Gunnels Wood Road, Stevenage SG1 2FX, UK
| | - Maria Panico
- BioPharmaSpec Ltd., St. Saviour JE2 7LA, UK or or
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Tal Schiller
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
| | - Juan Ibla
- Departments of Cardiac Surgery and Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Haim Bar
- Department of Statistics, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
| | - Amra Ismail
- Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease, Department of Biological, Geological & Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA
| | - Howard Morris
- BioPharmaSpec Ltd., St. Saviour JE2 7LA, UK or or
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Anton Komar
- Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease, Department of Biological, Geological & Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA
| | - Chava Kimchi-Sarfaty
- Hemostasis Branch, Division of Plasma Protein Therapeutics, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research, US FDA, Silver Spring, MD 20993, USA
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +1-(240)-402-8203
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Patel U, Gautam S, Chatterji D. Unraveling the Role of Silent Mutation in the ω-Subunit of Escherichia coli RNA Polymerase: Structure Transition Inhibits Transcription. ACS OMEGA 2019; 4:17714-17725. [PMID: 31681877 PMCID: PMC6822122 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.9b02103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2019] [Accepted: 09/05/2019] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
The bacterial RNA polymerase is a multi-subunit enzyme complex composed of six subunits, α2ββ'σω. The function of this enzyme is to transcribe the DNA base sequence to the RNA intermediate, which is ultimately translated to protein. Though the contribution of each subunit in RNA synthesis has been clearly elucidated, the role of the smallest ω-subunit is still unclear despite several studies. Recently, a study on a dominant negative mutant of rpoZ has been reported in which the mutant was shown to render the RNA polymerase defective in transcription initiation (ω6, N60D) and gave an insight on the function of ω in RNA polymerase. Serendipitously, we also obtained a silent mutant, and the mutant was found to be lethal during the isolation of toxic mutants. The primary focus of this study is to understand the mechanistic details of this lethality. Isolated ω shows a predominantly unstructured circular dichroism profile and becomes α-helical in the enzyme complex. This structural transition is perhaps the reason for this lack of function. Subsequently, we generated several silent mutants of ω to investigate the role of codon bias and the effect of rare codons with respect to their position in rpoZ. Not all silent mutations affect the structure. RNA polymerase when reconstituted with structurally altered silent mutants of ω is transcriptionally inactive. The CodonPlus strain, which has surplus tRNA, was used to assess for the rescue of the phenotype in lethal silent mutants.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sudhanshu Gautam
- Molecular Biophysics Unit, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Dipankar Chatterji
- Molecular Biophysics Unit, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
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