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Tang GQ, Hu H, Douglas J, Carter C. Primordial aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases preferred minihelices to full-length tRNA. Nucleic Acids Res 2024; 52:7096-7111. [PMID: 38783009 PMCID: PMC11229368 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkae417] [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: 02/27/2024] [Revised: 04/30/2024] [Accepted: 05/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (AARS) and tRNAs translate the genetic code in all living cells. Little is known about how their molecular ancestors began to enforce the coding rules for the expression of their own genes. Schimmel et al. proposed in 1993 that AARS catalytic domains began by reading an 'operational' code in the acceptor stems of tRNA minihelices. We show here that the enzymology of an AARS urzyme•TΨC-minihelix cognate pair is a rich in vitro realization of that idea. The TΨC-minihelixLeu is a very poor substrate for full-length Leucyl-tRNA synthetase. It is a superior RNA substrate for the corresponding urzyme, LeuAC. LeuAC active-site mutations shift the choice of both amino acid and RNA substrates. AARS urzyme•minihelix cognate pairs are thus small, pliant models for the ancestral decoding hardware. They are thus an ideal platform for detailed experimental study of the operational RNA code.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guo Qing Tang
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7260, USA
| | - Hao Hu
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7260, USA
| | - Jordan Douglas
- Department of Physics, The University of Auckland, New Zealand
- Centre for Computational Evolution, University of Auckland, New Zealand
- Department of Computer Science, The University of Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Charles W Carter
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7260, USA
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Carter CW. Base Pairing Promoted the Self-Organization of Genetic Coding, Catalysis, and Free-Energy Transduction. Life (Basel) 2024; 14:199. [PMID: 38398709 PMCID: PMC10890426 DOI: 10.3390/life14020199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2024] [Revised: 01/21/2024] [Accepted: 01/25/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
How Nature discovered genetic coding is a largely ignored question, yet the answer is key to explaining the transition from biochemical building blocks to life. Other, related puzzles also fall inside the aegis enclosing the codes themselves. The peptide bond is unstable with respect to hydrolysis. So, it requires some form of chemical free energy to drive it. Amino acid activation and acyl transfer are also slow and must be catalyzed. All living things must thus also convert free energy and synchronize cellular chemistry. Most importantly, functional proteins occupy only small, isolated regions of sequence space. Nature evolved heritable symbolic data processing to seek out and use those sequences. That system has three parts: a memory of how amino acids behave in solution and inside proteins, a set of code keys to access that memory, and a scoring function. The code keys themselves are the genes for cognate pairs of tRNA and aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases, AARSs. The scoring function is the enzymatic specificity constant, kcat/kM, which measures both catalysis and specificity. The work described here deepens the evidence for and understanding of an unexpected consequence of ancestral bidirectional coding. Secondary structures occur in approximately the same places within antiparallel alignments of their gene products. However, the polar amino acids that define the molecular surface of one are reflected into core-defining non-polar side chains on the other. Proteins translated from base-paired coding strands fold up inside out. Bidirectional genes thus project an inverted structural duality into the proteome. I review how experimental data root the scoring functions responsible for the origins of coding and catalyzed activation of unfavorable chemical reactions in that duality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles W Carter
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7260, USA
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Janowski M, Andrzejewska A. The legacy of mRNA engineering: A lineup of pioneers for the Nobel Prize. MOLECULAR THERAPY. NUCLEIC ACIDS 2022; 29:272-284. [PMID: 35855896 PMCID: PMC9278038 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtn.2022.07.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
mRNA is like Hermes, delivering the genetic code to cellular construction sites, so it has long been of interest, but only to a small group of scientists, and only demonstrating its remarkable efficacy in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines allowed it to go out into the open. Therefore, now is the right timing to delve into the stepping stones that underpin this success and pay tribute to the underlying scientists. From this perspective, advances in mRNA engineering have proven crucial to the rapidly growing role of this molecule in healthcare. Development of consecutive generations of cap analogs, including anti-reverse cap analogs (ARCAs), has significantly boosted translation efficacy and maintained an enthusiasm for mRNA research. Nucleotide modification to protect mRNA molecules from the host's immune system, followed by finding appropriate purification and packaging methods, were other links in the chain enabling medical breakthroughs. Currently, vaccines are the central area of mRNA research, but it will reach far beyond COVID-19. Supplementation of missing or abnormal proteins is another large field of mRNA research. Ex vivo cell engineering and genome editing have been expanding recently. Thus, it is time to recognize mRNA pioneers while building upon their legacy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miroslaw Janowski
- Program in Image Guided Neurointerventions, Center for Advanced Imaging Research, Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA,Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | - Anna Andrzejewska
- NeuroRepair Department, Mossakowski Medical Research Institute, PAS, 5 Pawinskiego Street, 02-106 Warsaw, Poland,Corresponding author Anna Andrzejewska, NeuroRepair Department, Mossakowski Medical Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences, 5 Pawinskiego Street, 02-106 Warsaw, Poland.
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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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Abstract
Codon-dependent translation underlies genetics and phylogenetic inferences, but its origins pose two challenges. Prevailing narratives cannot account for the fact that aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRSs), which translate the genetic code, must collectively enforce the rules used to assemble themselves. Nor can they explain how specific assignments arose from rudimentary differentiation between ancestral aaRSs and corresponding transfer RNAs (tRNAs). Experimental deconstruction of the two aaRS superfamilies created new experimental tools with which to analyze the emergence of the code. Amino acid and tRNA substrate recognition are linked to phase transfer free energies of amino acids and arise largely from aaRS class-specific differences in secondary structure. Sensitivity to protein folding rules endowed ancestral aaRS-tRNA pairs with the feedback necessary to rapidly compare alternative genetic codes and coding sequences. These and other experimental data suggest that the aaRS bidirectional genetic ancestry stabilized the differentiation and interdependence required to initiate and elaborate the genetic coding table.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles W Carter
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599-7260, USA;
| | - Peter R Wills
- Department of Physics, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
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Jitobaom K, Phakaratsakul S, Sirihongthong T, Chotewutmontri S, Suriyaphol P, Suptawiwat O, Auewarakul P. Codon usage similarity between viral and some host genes suggests a codon-specific translational regulation. Heliyon 2020; 6:e03915. [PMID: 32395662 PMCID: PMC7205639 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e03915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2020] [Revised: 03/02/2020] [Accepted: 04/30/2020] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
The codon usage pattern is a specific characteristic of each species; however, the codon usage of all of the genes in a genome is not uniform. Intriguingly, most viruses have codon usage patterns that are vastly different from the optimal codon usage of their hosts. How viral genes with different codon usage patterns are efficiently expressed during a viral infection is unclear. An analysis of the similarity between viral codon usage and the codon usage of the individual genes of a host genome has never been performed. In this study, we demonstrated that the codon usage of human RNA viruses is similar to that of some human genes, especially those involved in the cell cycle. This finding was substantiated by its concordance with previous reports of an upregulation at the protein level of some of these biological processes. It therefore suggests that some suboptimal viral codon usage patterns may actually be compatible with cellular translational machineries in infected conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kunlakanya Jitobaom
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Thailand
| | - Supinya Phakaratsakul
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Thailand
| | | | - Sasithorn Chotewutmontri
- Faculty of Medicine and Public Health, HRH Princess Chulabhorn College of Medical Science, Chulabhorn Royal Academy, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Prapat Suriyaphol
- Division of Bioinformatics and Data Management for Research, Department of Research and Development, Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.,Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Clinical Data Management, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Ornpreya Suptawiwat
- Faculty of Medicine and Public Health, HRH Princess Chulabhorn College of Medical Science, Chulabhorn Royal Academy, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Prasert Auewarakul
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Thailand
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Komar AA. The Yin and Yang of codon usage. Hum Mol Genet 2016; 25:R77-R85. [PMID: 27354349 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddw207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2016] [Accepted: 06/24/2016] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The genetic code is degenerate. With the exception of two amino acids (Met and Trp), all other amino acid residues are each encoded by multiple, so-called synonymous codons. Synonymous codons were initially presumed to have entirely equivalent functions, however, the finding that synonymous codons are not present at equal frequencies in genes/genomes suggested that codon choice might have functional implications beyond amino acid coding. The pattern of non-uniform codon use (known as codon usage bias) varies between organisms and represents a unique feature of an organism. Organism-specific codon choice is related to organism-specific differences in populations of cognate tRNAs. This implies that, in a given organism, frequently used codons will be translated more rapidly than infrequently used ones and vice versa A theory of codon-tRNA co-evolution (necessary to balance accurate and efficient protein production) was put forward to explain the existence of codon usage bias. This model suggests that selection favours preferred (frequent) over un-preferred (rare) codons in order to sustain efficient protein production in cells and that a given un-preferred codon will have the same effect on an organism's fitness regardless of its position within an mRNA's open reading frame. However, many recent studies refute this prediction. Un-preferred codons have been found to have important functional roles and their effects appeared to be position-dependent. Synonymous codon usage affects the efficiency/stringency of mRNA decoding, mRNA biogenesis/stability, and protein secretion and folding. This review summarizes recent developments in the field that have identified novel functions of synonymous codons and their usage.
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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, Ohio, OH, USA Department of Biochemistry and Center for RNA Molecular Biology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA Genomic Medicine Institute, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, OH, USA
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8
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The RNA code: nature's Rosetta Stone. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2014; 111:5758-9. [PMID: 24756939 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1404819111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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Okada Y, Nozu Y, Ohno T. Demonstration of the universality of the genetic code in vivo by comparison of the coat proteins synthesized in different plants by tobacco mosaic virus RNA. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 1969; 63:1189-95. [PMID: 5260918 PMCID: PMC223448 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.63.4.1189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
The amino acid sequence of the coat protein of tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) synthesized in the garden zinnia (Compositae family) is compared with that synthesized in tobacco (Solanaceae family) by using the same preparation of TMV-RNA as messenger. The Compositae family is the most advanced group, and the Solanaceae family is a relatively advanced group in the plant kingdom. Both amino acid sequences are identical, including acetylserine as the N-terminal amino acid. This gives direct evidence that the RNA codon in vivo in the plant kingdom is universal between Compositae and Solanaceae families.
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Rutishauser U, Cunningham BA, Bennett C, Konigsberg WH, Edelman GM. Amino acid sequence of the Fc region of a human gamma G-immunoglobulin. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 1968; 61:1414-21. [PMID: 5249817 PMCID: PMC225271 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.61.4.1414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
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Brown DM, Clark BF, Tanner MJ. Studies on codons for tyrosyl transfer ribonucleic acid and lysyl transfer ribonucleic acid of yeast. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF BIOCHEMISTRY 1968; 5:492-9. [PMID: 4880673 DOI: 10.1111/j.1432-1033.1968.tb00397.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
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Evidence for the Enzymatic Binding of Aminoacyl Transfer Ribonucleic Acid to Rat Liver Ribosomes. J Biol Chem 1968. [DOI: 10.1016/s0021-9258(19)81735-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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The Genetic Code After The Excitement. ADVANCES IN GENETICS 1968. [DOI: 10.1016/s0065-2660(08)60429-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register]
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Marshall RE, Caskey CT, Nirenberg M. Fine structure of RNA codewords recognized by bacterial, amphibian, and mammalian transfer RNA. Science 1967; 155:820-6. [PMID: 5335001 DOI: 10.1126/science.155.3764.820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 128] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Nucleotide sequences of 50 RNA codons recognized by amphibian and mammalian liver transfer RNA preparations were determined and compared with those recognized by Escherichia coli transfer RNA. Almost identical translations were obtained with transfer RNA from guinea pig liver, Xenopus laevis liver (South African clawed toad), and E. coli. However, guinea pig and Xenopus transfer RNA differ markedly from E. coli transfer RNA in relative response to certain trinucleotides. Transfer RNA from mammalian liver, amphibian liver, and amphibian muscle respond similarly to trinucleotide codons. Thus the genetic code is essentially universal, but transfer RNA from one organism may differ from that of another in relative response to some codons.
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Kellogg DA, Doctor BP, Loebel JE, Nirenberg MW. RNA codons and protein synthesis. IX. Synonym codon recognition by multiple species of valine-, alanine-, and methionine-sRNA. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 1966; 55:912-9. [PMID: 5327071 PMCID: PMC224250 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.55.4.912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
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Rottman F, Cerutti P. Template activity of uridylic acid-dihydrouridylic acid copolymers. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 1966; 55:960-6. [PMID: 5327075 PMCID: PMC224257 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.55.4.960] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
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Söll D, Ohtsuka E, Jones DS, Lohrmann R, Hayatsu H, Nishimura S, Khorana HG. Studies on polynucleotides, XLIX. Stimulation of the binding of aminoacyl-sRNA's to ribosomes by ribotrinucleotides and a survey of codon assignments for 20 amino acids. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 1965; 54:1378-85. [PMID: 5325653 PMCID: PMC219908 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.54.5.1378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
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Versteeg DH, Vliegenthart JF. A spatial depiction for the systematically degenerate genetic code. EXPERIENTIA 1965; 21:615-6. [PMID: 5868509 DOI: 10.1007/bf02151568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
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Brimacombe R, Trupin J, Nirenberg M, Leder P, Bernfield M, Jaouni T. RNA codewords and protein synthesis, 8. Nucleotide sequences of synonym codons for arginine, valine, cysteine, and alanine. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 1965; 54:954-60. [PMID: 5324401 PMCID: PMC219770 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.54.3.954] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
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Nirenberg M, Leder P, Bernfield M, Brimacombe R, Trupin J, Rottman F, O'Neal C. RNA codewords and protein synthesis, VII. On the general nature of the RNA code. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 1965; 53:1161-8. [PMID: 5330357 PMCID: PMC301388 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.53.5.1161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 196] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
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