Proximity-specific ribosome profiling reveals the logic of localized mitochondrial translation.

ABSTRACT: Localized translation broadly enables spatiotemporal control of gene expression. Here, we present LOV-domain-controlled ligase for translation localization (LOCL-TL), an optogenetic approach for monitoring translation with codon resolution at any defined subcellular location under physiological conditions. Application of LOCL-TL to mitochondrially localized translation revealed that ∼20% of human nuclear-encoded mitochondrial genes are translated on the outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM). Mitochondrially translated messages form two classes distinguished by encoded protein length, recruitment mechanism, and cellular function. An evolutionarily ancient mechanism allows nascent chains to drive cotranslational recruitment of long proteins via an unanticipated bipartite targeting signal. Conve

SUBMITTER: Luo J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12650760 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature