On the origin of the cap-dependent initiation of translation in eukaryotes

eIF4E as a molecular wildcard in metazoans RNA metabolism

The evolutionary origin of eukaryotes spurred the transition from prokaryotic-like translation to a more sophisticated, eukaryotic translation. During this process, successive gene duplication of a single, primordial eIF4E gene encoding the mRNA cap-binding protein eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) gave rise to a plethora of paralog genes across eukaryotes that underwent further functional diversification in RNA metabolism. The ability to take different roles is due to eIF4E promiscuity in binding many partner proteins, rendering eIF4E a highly versatile and multifunctional player that functions as a molecular wildcard. Thus, in metazoans, eIF4E paralogs are involved in various processes, including messenger RNA (mRNA) processing, export, translation, storage, and decay. Moreover, some paralogs display differential expression in tissues and developmental stages and show variable biochemical properties. In this review, we discuss recent advances shedding light on the functional diversification of eIF4E in metazoans. We emphasise humans and two phylogenetically distant species which have become paradigms for studies on development, namely the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster and the roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans.

Unorthodox Mechanisms to Initiate Translation Open Novel Paths for Gene Expression

Translation in eukaryotes is dependent on the activity of translation initiation factor (eIF) 4G family of proteins, a scaffold protein that, during the initiation step, coordinates the activity of other eIFs to recruit the 40S ribosomal subunit to the mRNA. Three decades of research on protein synthesis and its regulation has provided a wealth of evidence supporting the crucial role of cap-dependent translation initiation, which involves eIF4G. However, the recent discovery of a surprising variety of alternative mechanisms to initiate translation in the absence of eIF4G has stirred the orthodox view of how protein synthesis is performed. These mechanisms involve novel interactions among known eIFs, or between known eIFs and other proteins not previously linked to translation. Thus, a new picture is emerging in which the unorthodox translation initiation complexes contribute to the diversity of mechanisms that regulate gene expression in eukaryotes.

Conservation and Variability of the AUG Initiation Codon Context in Eukaryotes

Selection of the translation initiation site (TIS) is a crucial step during translation. In the 1980s Marylin Kozak performed key studies on vertebrate mRNAs to characterize the optimal TIS consensus sequence, the Kozak motif. Within this motif, conservation of nucleotides in crucial positions, namely a purine at -3 and a G at +4 (where the A of the AUG is numbered +1), is essential for TIS recognition. Ever since its characterization the Kozak motif has been regarded as the optimal sequence to initiate translation in all eukaryotes. We revisit here published in silico data on TIS consensus sequences, as well as experimental studies from diverse eukaryotic lineages, and propose that, while the -3A/G position is universally conserved, the remaining variability of the consensus sequences enables their classification as optimal, strong, and moderate TIS sequences.

m6A Facilitates eIF4F-Independent mRNA Translation

In eukaryotic cells, protein synthesis typically begins with the binding of eIF4F to the 7-methylguanylate (m⁷G) cap found on the 5' end of the majority of mRNAs. Surprisingly, overall translational output remains robust under eIF4F inhibition. The broad spectrum of eIF4F-resistant translatomes is incompatible with cap-independent translation mediated by internal ribosome entry sites (IRESs). Here, we report that N⁶-methyladenosine (m⁶A) facilitates mRNA translation that is resistant to eIF4F inactivation. Depletion of the methyltransferase METTL3 selectively inhibits translation of mRNAs bearing 5' UTR methylation, but not mRNAs with 5' terminal oligopyrimidine (TOP) elements. We identify ABCF1 as a critical mediator of m⁶A-promoted translation under both stress and physiological conditions. Supporting the role of ABCF1 in m⁶A-facilitated mRNA translation, ABCF1-sensitive transcripts largely overlap with METTL3-dependent mRNA targets. By illustrating the scope and mechanism of eIF4F-independent mRNA translation, these findings reshape our current perceptions of cellular translational pathways.

Non-canonical Translation in Plant RNA Viruses

Viral protein synthesis is completely dependent upon the host cell's translational machinery. Canonical translation of host mRNAs depends on structural elements such as the 5' cap structure and/or the 3' poly(A) tail of the mRNAs. Although many viral mRNAs are devoid of one or both of these structures, they can still translate efficiently using non-canonical mechanisms. Here, we review the tools utilized by positive-sense single-stranded (+ss) RNA plant viruses to initiate non-canonical translation, focusing on cis-acting sequences present in viral mRNAs. We highlight how these elements may interact with host translation factors and speculate on their contribution for achieving translational control. We also describe other translation strategies used by plant viruses to optimize the usage of the coding capacity of their very compact genomes, including leaky scanning initiation, ribosomal frameshifting and stop-codon readthrough. Finally, future research perspectives on the unusual translational strategies of +ssRNA viruses are discussed, including parallelisms between viral and host mRNAs mechanisms of translation, particularly for host mRNAs which are translated under stress conditions.

Cyclin B Translation Depends on mTOR Activity after Fertilization in Sea Urchin Embryos

The cyclin B/CDK1 complex is a key regulator of mitotic entry. Using PP242, a specific ATP-competitive inhibitor of mTOR kinase, we provide evidence that the mTOR signalling pathway controls cyclin B mRNA translation following fertilization in Sphaerechinus granularis and Paracentrotus lividus. We show that PP242 inhibits the degradation of the cap-dependent translation repressor 4E-BP (eukaryotic initiation factor 4E-Binding Protein). PP242 inhibits global protein synthesis, delays cyclin B accumulation, cyclin B/CDK1 complex activation and consequently entry into the mitotic phase of the cell cycle triggered by fertilization. PP242 inhibits cyclin B mRNA recruitment into active polysomes triggered by fertilization. An amount of cyclin B mRNA present in active polysomes appears to be insensitive to PP242 treatment. Taken together, our results suggest that, following sea urchin egg fertilization, cyclin B mRNA translation is controlled by two independent mechanisms: a PP242-sensitive and an additional PP242-insentitive mechanism.

Mextli is a novel eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E-binding protein that promotes translation in Drosophila melanogaster

Translation is a fundamental step in gene expression, and translational control is exerted in many developmental processes. Most eukaryotic mRNAs are translated by a cap-dependent mechanism, which requires recognition of the 5'-cap structure of the mRNA by eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E (eIF4E). eIF4E activity is controlled by eIF4E-binding proteins (4E-BPs), which by competing with eIF4G for eIF4E binding act as translational repressors. Here, we report the discovery of Mextli (Mxt), a novel Drosophila melanogaster 4E-BP that in sharp contrast to other 4E-BPs, has a modular structure, binds RNA, eIF3, and several eIF4Es, and promotes translation. Mxt is expressed at high levels in ovarian germ line stem cells (GSCs) and early-stage cystocytes, as is eIF4E-1, and we demonstrate the two proteins interact in these cells. Phenotypic analysis of mxt mutants indicates a role for Mxt in germ line stem cell (GSC) maintenance and in early embryogenesis. Our results support the idea that Mxt, like eIF4G, coordinates the assembly of translation initiation complexes, rendering Mxt the first example of evolutionary convergence of eIF4G function.

Diversity of Eukaryotic Translational Initiation Factor eIF4E in Protists

The greatest diversity of eukaryotic species is within the microbial eukaryotes, the protists, with plants and fungi/metazoa representing just two of the estimated seventy five lineages of eukaryotes. Protists are a diverse group characterized by unusual genome features and a wide range of genome sizes from 8.2 Mb in the apicomplexan parasite Babesia bovis to 112,000-220,050 Mb in the dinoflagellate Prorocentrum micans. Protists possess numerous cellular, molecular and biochemical traits not observed in “text-book” model organisms. These features challenge some of the concepts and assumptions about the regulation of gene expression in eukaryotes. Like multicellular eukaryotes, many protists encode multiple eIF4Es, but few functional studies have been undertaken except in parasitic species. An earlier phylogenetic analysis of protist eIF4Es indicated that they cannot be grouped within the three classes that describe eIF4E family members from multicellular organisms. Many more protist sequences are now available from which three clades can be recognized that are distinct from the plant/fungi/metazoan classes. Understanding of the protist eIF4Es will be facilitated as more sequences become available particularly for the under-represented opisthokonts and amoebozoa. Similarly, a better understanding of eIF4Es within each clade will develop as more functional studies of protist eIF4Es are completed.

On the Diversification of the Translation Apparatus across Eukaryotes

Diversity is one of the most remarkable features of living organisms. Current assessments of eukaryote biodiversity reaches 1.5 million species, but the true figure could be several times that number. Diversity is ingrained in all stages and echelons of life, namely, the occupancy of ecological niches, behavioral patterns, body plans and organismal complexity, as well as metabolic needs and genetics. In this review, we will discuss that diversity also exists in a key biochemical process, translation, across eukaryotes. Translation is a fundamental process for all forms of life, and the basic components and mechanisms of translation in eukaryotes have been largely established upon the study of traditional, so-called model organisms. By using modern genome-wide, high-throughput technologies, recent studies of many nonmodel eukaryotes have unveiled a surprising diversity in the configuration of the translation apparatus across eukaryotes, showing that this apparatus is far from being evolutionarily static. For some of the components of this machinery, functional differences between different species have also been found. The recent research reviewed in this article highlights the molecular and functional diversification the translational machinery has undergone during eukaryotic evolution. A better understanding of all aspects of organismal diversity is key to a more profound knowledge of life.

Dynamic evolution of translation initiation mechanisms in prokaryotes

It is generally believed that prokaryotic translation is initiated by the interaction between the Shine-Dalgarno (SD) sequence in the 5' UTR of an mRNA and the anti-SD sequence in the 3' end of a 16S ribosomal RNA. However, there are two exceptional mechanisms, which do not require the SD sequence for translation initiation: one is mediated by a ribosomal protein S1 (RPS1) and the other used leaderless mRNA that lacks its 5' UTR. To understand the evolutionary changes of the mechanisms of translation initiation, we examined how universal the SD sequence is as an effective initiator for translation among prokaryotes. We identified the SD sequence from 277 species (249 eubacteria and 28 archaebacteria). We also devised an SD index that is a proportion of SD-containing genes in which the differences of GC contents are taken into account. We found that the SD indices varied among prokaryotic species, but were similar within each phylum. Although the anti-SD sequence is conserved among species, loss of the SD sequence seems to have occurred multiple times, independently, in different phyla. For those phyla, RPS1-mediated or leaderless mRNA-used mechanisms of translation initiation are considered to be working to a greater extent. Moreover, we also found that some species, such as Cyanobacteria, may acquire new mechanisms of translation initiation. Our findings indicate that, although translation initiation is indispensable for all protein-coding genes in the genome of every species, its mechanisms have dynamically changed during evolution.

Global signatures of protein and mRNA expression levels

Cellular states are determined by differential expression of the cell's proteins. The relationship between protein and mRNA expression levels informs about the combined outcomes of translation and protein degradation which are, in addition to transcription and mRNA stability, essential contributors to gene expression regulation. This review summarizes the state of knowledge about large-scale measurements of absolute protein and mRNA expression levels, and the degree of correlation between the two parameters. We summarize the information that can be derived from comparison of protein and mRNA expression levels and discuss how corresponding sequence characteristics suggest modes of regulation.