Miniaturized armless tRNAs – function, interaction, modifications

小型化无臂 tRNA â 功能、相互作用、修饰

• 批准号: 451363052
• 负责人: Professor Dr. Mario Mörl
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Arbeitsgruppe Biochemie und Molekularbiologie
• 依托单位国家: 德国
• 项目类别: Research Grants
• 资助国家: 德国
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/451363052?language=en
• 关键词: Miniaturized; armless; tRNAs; function; interaction

In order to function as universal adapters in translation, tRNAs must have structural similarities to be recognized by central components of protein biosynthesis such as translation factors and ribosomes. They therefore have a highly conserved cloverleaf-like secondary structure that folds into a three-dimensional L-shape. Interestingly, tRNAs with significant structural deviations exist in the mitochondria of metazoa, with individual arms of the cloverleaf shape being reduced or missing. We were able to detect the most reduced tRNA forms in the nematode Romanomermis culicivorax, which have only short unpaired connector regions instead of D and T arm elements, resembling a hairpin that folds into a boomerang-like 3D shape. We want to investigate the function of these connector elements with regard to the tRNA structure and the interaction of these extremely reduced tRNAs with the unique mitochondrial elongation factor mt-EF-Tu and thereby determine the evolution of the connectors and the adaptation of the elongation factor. Furthermore, we want to identify specific modifications in the armless tRNAs and investigate their contribution to the formation of a functional tRNA structure. These studies will provide fundamental insights into the surprising flexibility of the mitochondrial translation system, its evolution and the adaptation of protein factors involved.

为了在翻译中作为通用衔接子发挥作用，tRNA必须具有结构相似性，以便被蛋白质生物合成的中心组分如翻译因子和核糖体识别。因此，它们具有高度保守的三叶草样二级结构，折叠成三维L形。有趣的是，具有显著结构偏差的tRNA存在于后生动物的线粒体中，三叶草形状的单个臂被减少或缺失。我们能够在线虫Romanomermis culicivorax中检测到最少的tRNA形式，它只有短的未配对连接器区域，而不是D和T臂元件，类似于折叠成类似回力棒的3D形状的发夹。我们想研究这些连接元件的功能，关于tRNA的结构和相互作用，这些极其减少的tRNA与独特的线粒体延伸因子MT-EF-Tu，从而确定连接器的进化和延长因子的适应。此外，我们希望确定无臂tRNA中的特定修饰，并研究它们对功能性tRNA结构形成的贡献。这些研究将为线粒体翻译系统的惊人灵活性，其进化和相关蛋白质因子的适应提供基本见解。