After the ribosome structure: how does translocation work?

Molecular targets for modulating the protein translation vital to proteostasis and neuron degeneration in Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the most common neurodegenerative movement disorder, which is characterized by the progressive loss of dopaminergic neurons in the Substantia Nigra pars compacta concomitant with Lewy body formation in affected brain areas. The detailed pathogenic mechanisms underlying the selective loss of dopaminergic neurons in PD are unclear, and no drugs or treatments have been developed to alleviate progressive dopaminergic neuron degeneration in PD. However, the formation of α-synuclein-positive protein aggregates in Lewy body has been identified as a common pathological feature of PD, possibly stemming from the consequence of protein misfolding and dysfunctional proteostasis. Proteostasis is the mechanism for maintaining protein homeostasis via modulation of protein translation, enhancement of chaperone capacity and the prompt clearance of misfolded protein by the ubiquitin proteasome system and autophagy. Deregulated protein translation and impaired capacities of chaperone or protein degradation can disturb proteostasis processes, leading to pathological protein aggregation and neurodegeneration in PD. In recent years, multiple molecular targets in the modulation of protein translation vital to proteostasis and dopaminergic neuron degeneration have been identified. The potential pathophysiological and therapeutic significance of these molecular targets to neurodegeneration in PD is highlighted.

Ensemble cryo-EM uncovers inchworm-like translocation of a viral IRES through the ribosome

Internal ribosome entry sites (IRESs) mediate cap-independent translation of viral mRNAs. Using electron cryo-microscopy of a single specimen, we present five ribosome structures formed with the Taura syndrome virus IRES and translocase eEF2•GTP bound with sordarin. The structures suggest a trajectory of IRES translocation, required for translation initiation, and provide an unprecedented view of eEF2 dynamics. The IRES rearranges from extended to bent to extended conformations. This inchworm-like movement is coupled with ribosomal inter-subunit rotation and 40S head swivel. eEF2, attached to the 60S subunit, slides along the rotating 40S subunit to enter the A site. Its diphthamide-bearing tip at domain IV separates the tRNA-mRNA-like pseudoknot I (PKI) of the IRES from the decoding center. This unlocks 40S domains, facilitating head swivel and biasing IRES translocation via hitherto-elusive intermediates with PKI captured between the A and P sites. The structures suggest missing links in our understanding of tRNA translocation.

A dynamic RNA loop in an IRES affects multiple steps of elongation factor-mediated translation initiation

Internal ribosome entry sites (IRESs) are powerful model systems to understand how the translation machinery can be manipulated by structured RNAs and for exploring inherent features of ribosome function. The intergenic region (IGR) IRESs from the Dicistroviridae family of viruses are structured RNAs that bind directly to the ribosome and initiate translation by co-opting the translation elongation cycle. These IRESs require an RNA pseudoknot that mimics a codon-anticodon interaction and contains a conformationally dynamic loop. We explored the role of this loop and found that both the length and sequence are essential for translation in different types of IGR IRESs and from diverse viruses. We found that loop 3 affects two discrete elongation factor-dependent steps in the IRES initiation mechanism. Our results show how the IRES directs multiple steps after 80S ribosome placement and highlights the often underappreciated significance of discrete conformationally dynamic elements within the context of structured RNAs.

DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.08146.001

Many viruses store their genetic information in the form of strands of ribonucleic acid (RNA), which contain building blocks called nucleotides. Once inside an infected cell, the virus hijacks the cellular structures that build proteins (called ribosomes), which forces the cell to start making viral proteins.

Many RNA viruses manipulate the cell’s ribosomes using RNA elements called Internal Ribosome Entry Sites, or IRESs. In a family of viruses called Dicistroviridae, which infect a number of insects, a section of the IRES RNA binds directly to the ribosome. Proteins called elongation factors then trigger a series of events that lead to the cell starting to make the viral proteins.

By mutating the RNA of many different Dicistroviridae viruses that infect a variety of invertebrates, Ruehle et al. have now investigated how a particular loop in the structure of the IRES helps to make cells build the viral proteins. This loop is flexible, and interacts with the ribosome to enable the IRES to move through the ribosome. Mutations that shorten the loop or alter the sequence of nucleotides in the loop prevent the occurrence of two of the steps that need to occur for the cell to make viral proteins. Both of these steps depend on elongation factors. Determining how the entire IRES might change shape as it moves through the ribosome is an important next step, since the ribosome is exquisitely sensitive to the shape and motions of its binding partners.

DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.08146.002

Pokeweed antiviral protein: its cytotoxicity mechanism and applications in plant disease resistance

Pokeweed antiviral protein (PAP) is a 29 kDa type I ribosome inactivating protein (RIP) found in pokeweed plants. Pokeweed produces different forms of PAP. This review focuses on the spring form of PAP isolated from Phytolacca americana leaves. PAP exerts its cytotoxicity by removing a specific adenine from the α-sarcin/ricin loop of the large ribosomal RNA. Besides depurination of the rRNA, PAP has additional activities that contribute to its cytotoxicity. The mechanism of PAP cytotoxicity is summarized based on evidence from the analysis of transgenic plants and the yeast model system. PAP was initially found to be anti-viral when it was co-inoculated with plant viruses onto plants. Transgenic plants expressing PAP and non-toxic PAP mutants have displayed broad-spectrum resistance to both viral and fungal infection. The mechanism of PAP-induced disease resistance in transgenic plants is summarized.

Taura syndrome virus IRES initiates translation by binding its tRNA-mRNA-like structural element in the ribosomal decoding center

In cap-dependent translation initiation, the open reading frame (ORF) of mRNA is established by the placement of the AUG start codon and initiator tRNA in the ribosomal peptidyl (P) site. Internal ribosome entry sites (IRESs) promote translation of mRNAs in a cap-independent manner. We report two structures of the ribosome-bound Taura syndrome virus (TSV) IRES belonging to the family of Dicistroviridae intergenic IRESs. Intersubunit rotational states differ in these structures, suggesting that ribosome dynamics play a role in IRES translocation. Pseudoknot I of the IRES occupies the ribosomal decoding center at the aminoacyl (A) site in a manner resembling that of the tRNA anticodon-mRNA codon. The structures reveal that the TSV IRES initiates translation by a previously unseen mechanism, which is conceptually distinct from initiator tRNA-dependent mechanisms. Specifically, the ORF of the IRES-driven mRNA is established by the placement of the preceding tRNA-mRNA-like structure in the A site, whereas the 40S P site remains unoccupied during this initial step.

Simulation and analysis of single-ribosome translation

In the cell, proteins are synthesized by ribosomes in a multi-step process called translation. The ribosome translocates along the messenger RNA to read the codons that encode the amino acid sequence of a protein. Elongation factors, including EF-G and EF-Tu, are used to catalyze the process. Recently, we have shown that translation can be followed at the single-molecule level using optical tweezers; this technique allows us to study the kinetics of translation by measuring the lifetime the ribosome spends at each codon. Here, we analyze the data from single-molecule experiments and fit the data with simple kinetic models. We also simulate the translation kinetics based on a multi-step mechanism from ensemble kinetic measurements. The mean lifetimes from the simulation were consistent with our experimental single-molecule measurements. We found that the calculated lifetime distributions were fit in general by equations with up to five rate-determining steps. Two rate-determining steps were only obtained at low concentrations of elongation factors. These analyses can be used to design new single-molecule experiments to better understand the kinetics and mechanism of translation.

Frameshifting RNA pseudoknots: structure and mechanism

Programmed ribosomal frameshifting (PRF) is one of the multiple translational recoding processes that fundamentally alters triplet decoding of the messenger RNA by the elongating ribosome. The ability of the ribosome to change translational reading frames in the -1 direction (-1 PRF) is employed by many positive strand RNA viruses, including economically important plant viruses and many human pathogens, such as retroviruses, e.g., HIV-1, and coronaviruses, e.g., the causative agent of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), in order to properly express their genomes. -1 PRF is programmed by a bipartite signal embedded in the mRNA and includes a heptanucleotide "slip site" over which the paused ribosome "backs up" by one nucleotide, and a downstream stimulatory element, either an RNA pseudoknot or a very stable RNA stem-loop. These two elements are separated by six to eight nucleotides, a distance that places the 5' edge of the downstream stimulatory element in direct contact with the mRNA entry channel of the 30S ribosomal subunit. The precise mechanism by which the downstream RNA stimulates -1 PRF by the translocating ribosome remains unclear. This review summarizes the recent structural and biophysical studies of RNA pseudoknots and places this work in the context of our evolving mechanistic understanding of translation elongation. Support for the hypothesis that the downstream stimulatory element provides a kinetic barrier to the ribosome-mediated unfolding is discussed.

The ribosome structure controls and directs mRNA entry, translocation and exit dynamics

The protein-synthesizing ribosome undergoes large motions to effect the translocation of tRNAs and mRNA; here, the domain motions of this system are explored with a coarse-grained elastic network model using normal mode analysis. Crystal structures are used to construct various model systems of the 70S complex with/without tRNA, elongation factor Tu and the ribosomal proteins. Computed motions reveal the well-known ratchet-like rotational motion of the large subunits, as well as the head rotation of the small subunit and the high flexibility of the L1 and L7/L12 stalks, even in the absence of ribosomal proteins. This result indicates that these experimentally observed motions during translocation are inherently controlled by the ribosomal shape and only partially dependent upon GTP hydrolysis. Normal mode analysis further reveals the mobility of A- and P-tRNAs to increase in the absence of the E-tRNA. In addition, the dynamics of the E-tRNA is affected by the absence of the ribosomal protein L1. The mRNA in the entrance tunnel interacts directly with helicase proteins S3 and S4, which constrain the mRNA in a clamp-like fashion, as well as with protein S5, which likely orients the mRNA to ensure correct translation. The ribosomal proteins S7, S11 and S18 may also be involved in assuring translation fidelity by constraining the mRNA at the exit site of the channel. The mRNA also interacts with the 16S 3' end forming the Shine-Dalgarno complex at the initiation step; the 3' end may act as a 'hook' to reel in the mRNA to facilitate its exit.

Crystal structure of RimI from Salmonella typhimurium LT2, the GNAT responsible for N(alpha)-acetylation of ribosomal protein S18

The three ribosomal proteins L7, S5, and S18 are included in the rare subset of prokaryotic proteins that are known to be N(alpha)-acetylated. The GCN5-related N-acetyltransferase (GNAT) protein RimI, responsible for the N(alpha)-acetylation of the ribosomal protein S18, was cloned from Salmonella typhimurium LT2 (RimI(ST)), overexpressed, and purified to homogeneity. Steady-state kinetic parameters for RimI(ST) were determined for AcCoA and a peptide substrate consisting of the first six amino acids of the target protein S18. The crystal structure of RimI(ST) was determined in complex with CoA, AcCoA, and a CoA-S-acetyl-ARYFRR bisubstrate inhibitor. The structures are consistent with a direct nucleophilic addition-elimination mechanism with Glu103 and Tyr115 acting as the catalytic base and acid, respectively. The RimI(ST)-bisubstrate complex suggests that several residues change conformation upon interacting with the N terminus of S18, including Glu103, the proposed active site base, facilitating proton exchange and catalysis.

Sordarin derivatives induce a novel conformation of the yeast ribosome translocation factor eEF2

The sordarins are fungal specific inhibitors of the translation factor eEF2, which catalyzes the translocation of tRNA and mRNA after peptide bond formation. We have determined the crystal structures of eEF2 in complex with two novel sordarin derivatives. In both structures, the three domains of eEF2 that form the ligand-binding pocket are oriented in a different manner relative to the rest of eEF2 compared with our previous structure of eEF2 in complex with the parent natural product sordarin. Yeast eEF2 is also shown to bind adenylic nucleotides, which can be displaced by sordarin, suggesting that ADP or ATP also bind to the three C-terminal domains of eEF2. Fusidic acid is a universal inhibitor of translation that targets EF-G or eEF2 and is widely used as an antibiotic against Gram-positive bacteria. Based on mutations conferring resistance to fusidic acid, cryo-EM reconstructions, and x-ray structures of eEF2, EF-G, and an EF-G homolog, we suggest that the conformation of EF-G stalled on the 70 S ribosome by fusidic acid is similar to that of eEF2 trapped on the 80 S ribosome by sordarin.

Structural basis for mRNA and tRNA positioning on the ribosome

Protein synthesis requires the accurate positioning of mRNA and tRNA in the peptidyl-tRNA site of the ribosome. Here we describe x-ray crystal structures of the intact bacterial ribosome from Escherichia coli in a complex with mRNA and the anticodon stem-loop of P-site tRNA. At 3.5-A resolution, these structures reveal rearrangements in the intact ribosome that clamp P-site tRNA and mRNA on the small ribosomal subunit. Binding of the anticodon stem-loop of P-site tRNA to the ribosome is sufficient to lock the head of the small ribosomal subunit in a single conformation, thereby preventing movement of mRNA and tRNA before mRNA decoding.

Pokeweed antiviral protein depurinates the sarcin/ricin loop of the rRNA prior to binding of aminoacyl-tRNA to the ribosomal A-site

Ribosome-inactivating proteins, such as the pokeweed antiviral protein (PAP), inhibit translation by depurinating the conserved sarcin/ricin loop of the large ribosomal RNA. Depurinated ribosomes are unable to bind elongation factor 2, and, thus, the translocation step of the elongation cycle is inhibited. Though the consequences of depurination are well characterized, the ribosome conformation required for depurination to take place has not been described. In this report, we correlate biochemical and genetic data to conclude that pokeweed antiviral protein depurinates the sarcin/ricin loop when the A-site of the ribosomal peptidyl-transferase center is unoccupied. We show that prior incubation of ribosomes with puromycin, an analog of the 3'-terminus of aminoacyl-tRNA, inhibits both binding and depurination by PAP in a concentration-dependent manner. Expression of PAP in the yeast strain mak8-1 results in little depurination unless the cells are lysed, a process that would promote loss of aminoacyl-tRNA from the ribosome. The mak8-1 strain is known to exhibit a higher affinity for aminoacyl-tRNA compared with wild-type cells, and therefore, its ribosomes are more resistant to PAP in vivo. These data contribute to the mechanism of action of pokeweed antiviral protein; specifically, they have uncovered the ribosomal conformation required for depurination that leads to subsequent translation inhibition.

Participation of the tRNA A76 hydroxyl groups throughout translation

The free 2'-3' cis-diol at the 3'-terminus of tRNA provides a unique juxtaposition of functional groups that play critical roles during protein synthesis. The translation process involves universally conserved chemistry at almost every stage of this multistep procedure, and the 2'- and 3'-OHs are in the immediate vicinity of chemistry at each step. The cis-diol contribution affects steps ranging from tRNA aminoacylation to peptide bond formation. The contributions have been studied in assays related to translation over a period that spans at least three decades. In this review, we follow the 2'- and 3'-OHs through the steps of translation and examine the involvement of these critical functional groups.

Teaching resources. Regulation of protein translation

This Teaching Resource provides a summary and slides derived from a lecture on protein translation and is part of the course "Cell Signaling Systems: A Course for Graduate Students." The lecture begins with a discussion of the various components that perform the translation process and then proceeds to describe the initiation, scanning, and ribosomal entry processes. The lecture concludes with the signaling mechanisms underlying translation regulation.

Divergent IRES elements in invertebrates

Viruses have evolved unique strategies and mechanisms to recruit ribosomes to ensure continued translation of their viral RNA during infection. The Dicistroviridae family of invertebrate viruses contains an unusual internal ribosome entry site (IRES), which can directly recruit ribosomes in the absence of initiation factors. Moreover, this IRES initiates translation at a non-AUG codon independent of an initiator Met-tRNA. Recent studies have shown that the IRES mimicks a tRNA to interact with and manipulate the ribosome. The presence of this divergent IRES likely allows translation of the dicistroviral RNA during infection when host translation is compromised. This review will explore the unique properties of this unprecedented mechanism of gene expression. Specific topics will examine structural components of the IRES, the mechanism of initiating translation at non-AUG codons and the regulation of this IRES in vivo. The existence of this mechanism suggests that the repertoire of open reading frames in our genome may be greater than anticipated.

Thermosynthesis as energy source for the RNA World: A model for the bioenergetics of the origin of life

The thermosynthesis concept, biological free energy gain from thermal cycling, is combined with the concept of the RNA World. The resulting overall origin of life model suggests new explanations for the emergence of the genetic code and the ribosome. It is proposed that the first protein named pF(1) obtained the energy to support the RNA World by a thermal variation of F(1) ATP synthase's binding change mechanism. It is further proposed that this pF(1) was the single translation product during the emergence of the genetic machinery. During thermal cycling pF(1) condensed many substrates with broad specificity, yielding NTPs and randomly constituted protein and RNA libraries that contained self-replicating RNA. The smallness of pF(1) permitted the emergence of the genetic machinery by selection of RNA that increased the fraction of pF(1)s in the protein library: (1) an amino acids concatenating progenitor of rRNA bound to (2) a chain of 'positional tRNAs' linked by mutual recognition, and yielded a pF(1) (or its main motif); this positional tRNA set gradually evolved to a set of regular tRNAs functioning according to the genetic code, with concomitant emergence of (3) an mRNA coding for pF(1).

Nascent peptide-mediated translation elongation arrest coupled with mRNA degradation in the CGS1 gene of Arabidopsis

Expression of the Arabidopsis CGS1 gene that codes for cystathionine gamma-synthase is feedback regulated at the step of mRNA stability in response to S-adenosyl-L-methionine (AdoMet). A short stretch of amino acid sequence, called the MTO1 region, encoded by the first exon of CGS1 itself is involved in this regulation. Here, we demonstrate, using a cell-free system, that AdoMet induces temporal translation elongation arrest at the Ser-94 codon located immediately downstream of the MTO1 region, by analyzing a translation intermediate and performing primer extension inhibition (toeprint) analysis. This translation arrest precedes the formation of a degradation intermediate of CGS1 mRNA, which has its 5' end points near the 5' edge of the stalled ribosome. The position of ribosome stalling also suggests that the MTO1 region in nascent peptide resides in the ribosomal exit tunnel when translation elongation is temporarily arrested. In addition to the MTO1 region amino acid sequence, downstream Trp-93 is also important for the AdoMet-induced translation arrest. This is the first example of nascent peptide-mediated translation elongation arrest coupled with mRNA degradation in eukaryotes. Furthermore, our data suggest that the ribosome stalls at the step of translocation rather than at the step of peptidyl transfer.

Movement in ribosome translocation

Translocation of peptidyl-tRNA and mRNA within the ribosome during protein synthesis is promoted by the elongation factor EF-G and by the hydrolysis of GTP. A new study reports that EF-G binds to ribosomes as an EF-G•GDP complex and that GTP is exchanged for GDP on the ribosome. Together with cryo-electron microscopy, this unexpected finding helps clarify the role of GTP in translocation.

Conserved but nonessential interaction of SRP RNA with translation factor EF-G

4.5S RNA is essential for viability of Escherichia coli, and forms a key component of the signal recognition particle (SRP), a ubiquitous ribonucleoprotein complex responsible for cotranslational targeting of secretory proteins. 4.5S RNA also binds independently to elongation factor G (EF-G), a five-domain GTPase that catalyzes the translocation step during protein biosynthesis on the ribosome. Point mutations in EF-G suppress deleterious effects of 4.5S RNA depletion, as do mutations in the EF-G binding site within ribosomal RNA, suggesting that 4.5S RNA might play a critical role in ribosome function in addition to its role in SRP. Here we show that 4.5S RNA and EF-G form a phylogenetically conserved, low-affinity but highly specific complex involving sequence elements required for 4.5S binding to its cognate SRP protein, Ffh. Mutational analysis indicates that the same molecular structure of 4.5S RNA is recognized in each case. Surprisingly, however, the suppressor mutant forms of EF-G bind very weakly or undetectably to 4.5S RNA, implying that cells can survive 4.5S RNA depletion by decreasing the affinity between 4.5S RNA and the translational machinery. These data suggest that SRP function is the essential role of 4.5S RNA in bacteria.

Identification of a hypothetical membrane protein interactor of ribosomal phosphoprotein P0

The ribosomal phosphoprotein P0 of the human malarial parasite Plasmodium falciparum (PfP0) has been identified as a protective surface protein. In Drosophila, P0 protein functions in the nucleus. The ribosomal function of P0 is mediated at the stalk of the large ribosomal subunit at the GTPase centre, where the elongation factor eEF2 binds. The multiple roles of the P0 protein presumably occur through interactions with other proteins. To identify such interacting protein domains, a yeast two-hybrid screen was carried out. Out of a set of sixty clones isolated, twelve clones that interacted strongly with both PfP0 and the Saccharomyces cerevisiae P0 (ScP0) protein were analysed. These belonged to three broad classes: namely (i) ribosomal proteins; (ii) proteins involved in nucleotide binding; and (iii) hypothetical integral membrane proteins. One of the strongest interactors (clone 67B) mapped to the gene YFL034W which codes for a hypothetical integral membrane protein, and is conserved amongst several eukaryotic organisms. The insert of clone 67B was expressed as a recombinant protein, and immunoprecipitaion (IP) reaction with anti-P0 antibodies pulled down this protein along with PfP0 as well as ScP0 protein. Using deletion constructions, the domain of ScP0, which interacted with clone 67B, was mapped to 60-148 amino acids. It is envisaged that the surface localization of P0 protein may be mediated through interactions with putative YFL034W-like proteins in P. falciparum.

A functional interaction between ribosomal proteins S7 and S11 within the bacterial ribosome

In this study, we used site-directed mutagenesis to disrupt an interaction that had been detected between ribosomal proteins S7 and S11 in the crystal structure of the bacterial 30 S subunit. This interaction, which is located in the E site, connects the head of the 30 S subunit to the platform and is involved in the formation of the exit channel through which passes the 30 S-bound messenger RNA. Neither mutations in S7 nor mutations in S11 prevented the incorporation of the proteins into the 30 S subunits but they perturbed the function of the ribosome. In vivo assays showed that ribosomes with either mutated S7 or S11 were altered in the control of translational fidelity, having an increased capacity for frameshifting, readthrough of a nonsense codon and codon misreading. Toeprinting and filter-binding assays showed that 30 S subunits with either mutated S7 or S11 have an enhanced capacity to bind mRNA. The effects of the S7 and S11 mutations can be related to an increased flexibility of the head of the 30 S, to an opening of the mRNA exit channel and to a perturbation of the proposed allosteric coupling between the A and E sites. Altogether, our results demonstrate that S7 and S11 interact in a functional manner and support the notion that protein-protein interactions contribute to the dynamics of the ribosome.