Physical Origins of Codon Positions That Strongly Influence Cotranslational Folding: A Framework for Controlling Nascent-Protein Folding

TIR predictor and optimizer: Web-tools for accurate prediction of translation initiation rate and precision gene design in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Translation initiation is the primary determinant of the rate of protein production. The variation in the rate with which this step occurs can cause up to three orders of magnitude differences in cellular protein levels. Several mRNA features, including mRNA stability in proximity to the start codon, coding sequence length, and presence of specific motifs in the mRNA molecule, have been shown to influence the translation initiation rate. These molecular factors acting at different strengths allow precise control of in vivo translation initiation rate and thus the rate of protein synthesis. However, despite the paramount importance of translation initiation rate in protein synthesis, accurate prediction of the absolute values of initiation rate remains a challenge. In fact, as of now, there is no available model for predicting the initiation rate in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. To address this, we train a machine learning model for predicting the in vivo initiation rate in S. cerevisiae transcripts. The model is trained using a diverse set of mRNA transcripts, enabling the comparison of initiation rates across different transcripts. Our model exhibited excellent accuracy in predicting the translation initiation rate and demonstrated its effectiveness with both endogenous and exogenous transcripts. Then, by combining the machine learning model with the Monte-Carlo search algorithm, we have also devised a method to optimize the nucleotide sequence of any gene to achieve a specific target initiation rate. The machine learning model we've developed for predicting translation initiation rates, along with the gene optimization method, are deployed as a web server. Both web servers are accessible for free at the following link: ajeetsharmalab.com/TIRPredictor. Thus, this research advances our fundamental understanding of translation initiation processes, with direct applications in biotechnology.

Combination of hydrophobicity and codon usage bias determines sorting of model K+ channel protein to either mitochondria or endoplasmic reticulum

When the K+ channel-like protein Kesv from Ectocarpus siliculosus virus 1 is heterologously expressed in mammalian cells, it is sorted to the mitochondria. This targeting can be redirected to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) by altering the codon usage in distinct regions of the gene or by inserting a triplet of hydrophobic amino acids (AAs) into the protein's C-terminal transmembrane domain (ct-TMD). Systematic variations in the flavor of the inserted AAs and/or its codon usage show that a positive charge in the inserted AA triplet alone serves as strong signal for mitochondria sorting. In cases of neutral AA triplets, mitochondria sorting are favored by a combination of hydrophilic AAs and rarely used codons; sorting to the ER exhibits the inverse dependency. This propensity for ER sorting is particularly high when a common codon follows a rarer one in the AA triplet; mitochondria sorting in contrast is supported by codon uniformity. Since parameters like positive charge, hydrophobic AAs, and common codons are known to facilitate elongation of nascent proteins in the ribosome the data suggest a mechanism in which local changes in elongation velocity and co-translational folding in the ct-TMD influence intracellular protein sorting.

How synonymous mutations alter enzyme structure and function over long timescales

The specific activity of enzymes can be altered over long timescales in cells by synonymous mutations that alter a messenger RNA molecule's sequence but not the encoded protein's primary structure. How this happens at the molecular level is unknown. Here, we use multiscale modelling of three Escherichia coli enzymes (type III chloramphenicol acetyltransferase, D-alanine-D-alanine ligase B and dihydrofolate reductase) to understand experimentally measured changes in specific activity due to synonymous mutations. The modelling involves coarse-grained simulations of protein synthesis and post-translational behaviour, all-atom simulations to test robustness and quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics calculations to characterize enzymatic function. We show that changes in codon translation rates induced by synonymous mutations cause shifts in co-translational and post-translational folding pathways that kinetically partition molecules into subpopulations that very slowly interconvert to the native, functional state. Structurally, these states resemble the native state, with localized misfolding near the active sites of the enzymes. These long-lived states exhibit reduced catalytic activity, as shown by their increased activation energies for the reactions they catalyse.

Consistent Clustering Pattern of Prokaryotic Genes Based on Base Frequency at the Second Codon Position and its Association with Functional Category Preference

In 2002, our research group observed a gene clustering pattern based on the base frequency of A versus T at the second codon position in the genome of Vibrio cholera and found that the functional category distribution of genes in the two clusters was different. With the availability of a large number of sequenced genomes, we performed a systematic investigation of A2–T2 distribution and found that 2694 out of 2764 prokaryotic genomes have an optimal clustering number of two, indicating a consistent pattern. Analysis of the functional categories of the coding genes in each cluster in 1483 prokaryotic genomes indicated, that 99.33% of the genomes exhibited a significant difference (p < 0.01) in function distribution between the two clusters. Specifically, functional category P was overrepresented in the small cluster of 98.65% of genomes, whereas categories J, K, and L were overrepresented in the larger cluster of over 98.52% of genomes. Lineage analysis uncovered that these preferences appear consistently across all phyla. Overall, our work revealed an almost universal clustering pattern based on the relative frequency of A2 versus T2 and its role in functional category preference. These findings will promote the understanding of the rationality of theoretical prediction of functional classes of genes from their nucleotide sequences and how protein function is determined by DNA sequence.

Graphical abstract

Recent advances in the development of Aspergillus for protein production

Aspergillus had been widely used in the industrial production of recombinant proteins. In addition to the safety and broad substrate utilization spectrum, its efficient post-translational modification and strong protein secretion capacity have significant advantages for developing an excellent protein-producing cell factory in industrial production. However, the difficulties in genetic manipulation of Aspergillus and varying expression levels of different heterologous proteins hampered its further development and application. Recently, the development of CRISPR genome editing and high-throughput screening platforms has facilitated the Aspergillus development of a wide range of modifications and applications. Meanwhile, multi-omics analysis and multiplexed genetic engineering have promoted effective knowledge mining. This paper provides a comprehensive and updated review of these advances, including high-throughput screening, genome editing, protein expression modules, and fermentation optimization. It also highlights and discusses the latest significant progress, aiming to provide a practical guide for implementing Aspergillus as an efficient protein-producing cell factory.

A ribosome-associated chaperone enables substrate triage in a cotranslational protein targeting complex

Protein biogenesis is essential in all cells and initiates when a nascent polypeptide emerges from the ribosome exit tunnel, where multiple ribosome-associated protein biogenesis factors (RPBs) direct nascent proteins to distinct fates. How distinct RPBs spatiotemporally coordinate with one another to affect accurate protein biogenesis is an emerging question. Here, we address this question by studying the role of a cotranslational chaperone, nascent polypeptide-associated complex (NAC), in regulating substrate selection by signal recognition particle (SRP), a universally conserved protein targeting machine. We show that mammalian SRP and SRP receptors (SR) are insufficient to generate the biologically required specificity for protein targeting to the endoplasmic reticulum. NAC co-binds with and remodels the conformational landscape of SRP on the ribosome to regulate its interaction kinetics with SR, thereby reducing the nonspecific targeting of signalless ribosomes and pre-emptive targeting of ribosomes with short nascent chains. Mathematical modeling demonstrates that the NAC-induced regulations of SRP activity are essential for the fidelity of cotranslational protein targeting. Our work establishes a molecular model for how NAC acts as a triage factor to prevent protein mislocalization, and demonstrates how the macromolecular crowding of RPBs at the ribosome exit site enhances the fidelity of substrate selection into individual protein biogenesis pathways.

Hierarchical Markov State Model Building to Describe Molecular Processes

Markov state models can describe ensembles of pathways via kinetic networks but are difficult to create when large free-energy barriers limit unbiased sampling. Chain-of-states simulations allow sampling over large free-energy barriers but are often constructed using a single pathway that is unlikely to thermodynamically average over orthogonal degrees of freedom in complex systems. Here, we combine the advantages of these two approaches in the form of a Markov state model of Markov state models, which we call a Hierarchical Markov state model. In this approach, independent Markov models are constructed in regions of configuration space that are locally well sampled but are separated by large free-energy barriers from other regions. A string method is used to construct an ensemble of pathways connecting the states of these different local Markov models, and the rate through each pathway is then estimated. These rates are then combined with the rate information from the local Markov models in a master equation to predict global rates, fluxes, and populations. By applying this hierarchical approach to tractable systems, a toy potential and dipeptides, we demonstrate that it is more accurate than the conventional single-pathway description. The advantages of this approach are that it (i) is more realistic than the conventional chain-of-states approach, as an ensemble of pathways rather than a single pathway is used to describe processes in high-dimensional systems, and (ii) it resolves the issue of poor sampling in Markov State model building when large free-energy barriers are present. The divide-and-conquer strategy inherent to this approach should make this procedure straightforward to apply to more complex systems.

Mechanochemistry in Translation

As the influence of translation rates on protein folding and function has come to light, the mechanisms by which translation speed is modulated have become an important issue. One mechanism entails the generation of force by the nascent protein. Cotranslational processes, such as nascent protein folding, the emergence of unfolded nascent chain segments from the ribosome's exit tunnel, and insertion of the nascent chain into or translocation of the nascent chain through membranes, can generate forces that are transmitted back to the peptidyl transferase center and affect translation rates. In this Perspective, we examine the processes that generate these forces, the mechanisms of transmission along the ribosomal exit tunnel to the peptidyl transferase center, and the effects of force on the ribosome's catalytic cycle. We also discuss the physical models that have been developed to predict and explain force generation for individual processes and speculate about other processes that may generate forces that have yet to be tested.

Within-Gene Shine-Dalgarno Sequences Are Not Selected for Function

The Shine-Dalgarno (SD) sequence motif facilitates translation initiation and is frequently found upstream of bacterial start codons. However, thousands of instances of this motif occur throughout the middle of protein coding genes in a typical bacterial genome. Here, we use comparative evolutionary analysis to test whether SD sequences located within genes are functionally constrained. We measure the conservation of SD sequences across Enterobacteriales, and find that they are significantly less conserved than expected. Further, the strongest SD sequences are the least conserved whereas we find evidence of conservation for the weakest possible SD sequences given amino acid constraints. Our findings indicate that most SD sequences within genes are likely to be deleterious and removed via selection. To illustrate the origin of these deleterious costs, we show that ATG start codons are significantly depleted downstream of SD sequences within genes, highlighting the constraint that these sequences impose on the surrounding nucleotides to minimize the potential for erroneous translation initiation.

Domain topology, stability, and translation speed determine mechanical force generation on the ribosome

The concomitant folding of a nascent protein domain with its synthesis can generate mechanical forces that act on the ribosome and alter translation speed. Such changes in speed can affect the structure and function of the newly synthesized protein as well as cellular phenotype. The domain properties that govern force generation have yet to be identified and understood, and the influence of translation speed is unknown because all reported measurements have been carried out on arrested ribosomes. Here, using coarse-grained molecular simulations and statistical mechanical modeling of protein synthesis, we demonstrate that force generation is determined by a domain's stability and topology, as well as translation speed. The statistical mechanical models we create predict how force profiles depend on these properties. These results indicate that force measurements on arrested ribosomes will not always accurately reflect what happens in a cell, especially for slow-folding domains, and suggest the possibility that certain domain properties may be enriched or depleted across the structural proteome of organisms through evolutionary selection pressures to modulate protein synthesis speed and posttranslational protein behavior.

Translation in Prokaryotes

This review summarizes our current understanding of translation in prokaryotes, focusing on the mechanistic and structural aspects of each phase of translation: initiation, elongation, termination, and ribosome recycling. The assembly of the initiation complex provides multiple checkpoints for messenger RNA (mRNA) and start-site selection. Correct codon-anticodon interaction during the decoding phase of elongation results in major conformational changes of the small ribosomal subunit and shapes the reaction pathway of guanosine triphosphate (GTP) hydrolysis. The ribosome orchestrates proton transfer during peptide bond formation, but requires the help of elongation factor P (EF-P) when two or more consecutive Pro residues are to be incorporated. Understanding the choreography of transfer RNA (tRNA) and mRNA movements during translocation helps to place the available structures of translocation intermediates onto the time axis of the reaction pathway. The nascent protein begins to fold cotranslationally, in the constrained space of the polypeptide exit tunnel of the ribosome. When a stop codon is reached at the end of the coding sequence, the ribosome, assisted by termination factors, hydrolyzes the ester bond of the peptidyl-tRNA, thereby releasing the nascent protein. Following termination, the ribosome is dissociated into subunits and recycled into another round of initiation. At each step of translation, the ribosome undergoes dynamic fluctuations between different conformation states. The aim of this article is to show the link between ribosome structure, dynamics, and function.

Non-equilibrium coupling of protein structure and function to translation-elongation kinetics

Protein folding research has been dominated by the assumption that thermodynamics determines protein structure and function. And that when the folding process is compromised in vivo the proteostasis machinery-chaperones, deaggregases, the proteasome-work to restore proteins to their soluble, functional form or degrade them to maintain the cellular pool of proteins in a quasi-equilibrium state. During the past decade, however, more and more proteins have been identified for which altering only their speed of synthesis alters their structure and function, the efficiency of the down-stream processes they take part in, and cellular phenotype. Indeed, evidence has emerged that evolutionary selection pressures have encoded translation-rate information into mRNA molecules to coordinate diverse co-translational processes. Thus, non-equilibrium physics can play a fundamental role in influencing nascent protein behavior, mRNA sequence evolution, and disease. Here, we discuss how our understanding of this phenomenon is being advanced by the application of theoretical tools from the physical sciences.

Evidence of evolutionary selection for cotranslational folding

Recent experiments and simulations have demonstrated that proteins can fold on the ribosome. However, the extent and generality of fitness effects resulting from cotranslational folding remain open questions. Here we report a genome-wide analysis that uncovers evidence of evolutionary selection for cotranslational folding. We describe a robust statistical approach to identify loci within genes that are both significantly enriched in slowly translated codons and evolutionarily conserved. Surprisingly, we find that domain boundaries can explain only a small fraction of these conserved loci. Instead, we propose that regions enriched in slowly translated codons are associated with cotranslational folding intermediates, which may be smaller than a single domain. We show that the intermediates predicted by a native-centric model of cotranslational folding account for the majority of these loci across more than 500 Escherichia coli proteins. By making a direct connection to protein folding, this analysis provides strong evidence that many synonymous substitutions have been selected to optimize translation rates at specific locations within genes. More generally, our results indicate that kinetics, and not just thermodynamics, can significantly alter the efficiency of self-assembly in a biological context.

Precise quantification of translation inhibition by mRNA structures that overlap with the ribosomal footprint in N-terminal coding sequences

A mRNA's translation rate is controlled by several sequence determinants, including the presence of RNA structures within the N-terminal regions of its coding sequences. However, the physical rules that govern when such mRNA structures will inhibit translation remain unclear. Here, we introduced systematically designed RNA hairpins into the N-terminal coding region of a reporter protein with steadily increasing distances from the start codon, followed by characterization of their mRNA and expression levels in Escherichia coli. We found that the mRNAs' translation rates were repressed, by up to 530-fold, when mRNA structures overlapped with the ribosome's footprint. In contrast, when the mRNA structure was located outside the ribosome's footprint, translation was repressed by <2-fold. By combining our measurements with biophysical modeling, we determined that the ribosomal footprint extends 13 nucleotides into the N-terminal coding region and, when a mRNA structure overlaps or partially overlaps with the ribosomal footprint, the free energy to unfold only the overlapping structure controlled the extent of translation repression. Overall, our results provide precise quantification of the rules governing translation initiation at N-terminal coding regions, improving the predictive design of post-transcriptional regulatory elements that regulate translation rate.

Fast Protein Translation Can Promote Co- and Posttranslational Folding of Misfolding-Prone Proteins

Chemical kinetic modeling has previously been used to predict that fast-translating codons can enhance cotranslational protein folding by helping to avoid misfolded intermediates. Consistent with this prediction, protein aggregation in yeast and worms was observed to increase when translation was globally slowed down, possibly due to increased cotranslational misfolding. Observation of similar behavior in molecular simulations would confirm predictions from the simpler chemical kinetic model and provide a molecular perspective on cotranslational folding, misfolding, and the impact of translation speed on these processes. All-atom simulations cannot reach the timescales relevant to protein synthesis, and most conventional structure-based coarse-grained models do not allow for nonnative structure formation. Here, we introduce a protocol to incorporate misfolding using the functional forms of publicly available force fields. With this model we create two artificial proteins that are capable of undergoing structural transitions between a native and a misfolded conformation and simulate their synthesis by the ribosome. Consistent with the chemical kinetic predictions, we find that rapid synthesis of misfolding-prone nascent-chain segments increases the fraction of folded proteins by kinetically partitioning more molecules through on-pathway intermediates, decreasing the likelihood of sampling misfolded conformations. Novel to this study, to our knowledge, we observe that differences in protein dynamics, arising from different translation-elongation schedules, can persist long after the nascent protein has been released from the ribosome, and that a sufficient level of energetic frustration is needed for fast-translating codons to be beneficial for folding. These results provide further evidence that fast-translating codons can be as biologically important as pause sites in coordinating cotranslational folding.

Increasing Protein Production Rates Can Decrease the Rate at Which Functional Protein Is Produced and Their Steady-State Levels

The rate at which soluble, functional protein is produced by the ribosome has recently been found to vary in complex and unexplained ways as various translation-associated rates are altered through synonymous codon substitutions. To understand this phenomenon, here, we combine a well-established ribosome-traffic model with a master-equation model of cotranslational domain folding to explore the scenarios that are possible for the protein production rate, J, and the functional-nascent protein production rate, F, as the rates of various translation processes are altered for five different E. coli proteins. We find that while J monotonically increases as the rates of translation-initiation, -elongation, and -termination increase, F can either increase or decrease. We show that F's nonmonotonic behavior arises within the model from two opposing trends: the tendency for increased translation rates to produce more total protein but less cotranslationally folded protein. We further demonstrate that under certain conditions these nonmonotonic changes in F can result in nonmonotonic variations in post-translational, steady-state levels of functional protein. These results provide a potential explanation for recent experimental observations in which the specific activity of enzymatic proteins decreased with increased synthesis rates. Additionally our model has the potential to be used to rationally design transcripts to maximize the production of functional nascent protein by simultaneously optimizing translation initiation, elongation, and termination rates.

Effect of Nascent Peptide Steric Bulk on Elongation Kinetics in the Ribosome Exit Tunnel

All proteins are synthesized by the ribosome, a macromolecular complex that accomplishes the life-sustaining tasks of faithfully decoding mRNA and catalyzing peptide bond formation at the peptidyl transferase center (PTC). The ribosome has evolved an exit tunnel to host the elongating new peptide, protect it from proteolytic digestion, and guide its emergence. It is here that the nascent chain begins to fold. This folding process depends on the rate of translation at the PTC. We report here that besides PTC events, translation kinetics depend on steric constraints on nascent peptide side chains and that confined movements of cramped side chains within and through the tunnel fine-tune elongation rates.

Regulation, evolution and consequences of cotranslational protein complex assembly

Most proteins assemble into complexes, which are involved in almost all cellular processes. Thus it is crucial for cell viability that mechanisms for correct assembly exist. The timing of assembly plays a key role in determining the fate of the protein: if the protein is allowed to diffuse into the crowded cellular milieu, it runs the risk of forming non-specific interactions, potentially leading to aggregation or other deleterious outcomes. It is therefore expected that strong regulatory mechanisms should exist to ensure efficient assembly. In this review we discuss the cotranslational assembly of protein complexes and discuss how it occurs, ways in which it is regulated, potential disadvantages of cotranslational interactions between proteins and the implications for the inheritance of dominant-negative genetic disorders.

Quantitative determination of ribosome nascent chain stability

Accurate protein folding is essential for proper cellular and organismal function. In the cell, protein folding is carefully regulated; changes in folding homeostasis (proteostasis) can disrupt many cellular processes and have been implicated in various neurodegenerative diseases and other pathologies. For many proteins, the initial folding process begins during translation while the protein is still tethered to the ribosome; however, most biophysical studies of a protein's energy landscape are carried out in isolation under idealized, dilute conditions and may not accurately report on the energy landscape in vivo. Thus, the energy landscape of ribosome nascent chains and the effect of the tethered ribosome on nascent chain folding remain unclear. Here we have developed a general assay for quantitatively measuring the folding stability of ribosome nascent chains, and find that the ribosome exerts a destabilizing effect on the polypeptide chain. This destabilization decreases as a function of the distance away from the peptidyl transferase center. Thus, the ribosome may add an additional layer of robustness to the protein-folding process by avoiding the formation of stable partially folded states before the protein has completely emerged from the ribosome.

The ribosome in action: Tuning of translational efficiency and protein folding

The cellular proteome is shaped by the combined activities of the gene expression and quality control machineries. While transcription plays an undoubtedly important role, in recent years also translation emerged as a key step that defines the composition and quality of the proteome and the functional activity of proteins in the cell. Among the different post-transcriptional control mechanisms, translation initiation and elongation provide multiple checkpoints that can affect translational efficiency. A multitude of specific signals in mRNAs can determine the frequency of translation initiation, choice of the open reading frame, global and local elongation velocities, and the folding of the emerging protein. In addition to specific signatures in the mRNAs, also variations in the global pools of translation components, including ribosomes, tRNAs, mRNAs, and translation factors can alter translational efficiencies. The cellular outcomes of phenomena such as mRNA codon bias are sometimes difficult to understand due to the staggering complexity of covariates that affect codon usage, translation, and protein folding. Here we summarize the experimental evidence on how the ribosome-together with the other components of the translational machinery-can alter translational efficiencies of mRNA at the initiation and elongation stages and how translation velocity affects protein folding. We seek to explain these findings in the context of mechanistic work on the ribosome. The results argue in favour of a new understanding of translation control as a hub that links mRNA homeostasis to production and quality control of proteins in the cell.