Homologs of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases acylate carrier proteins and provide a link between ribosomal and nonribosomal peptide synthesis.

ABSTRACT: Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRSs) are ancient and evolutionary conserved enzymes catalyzing the formation of aminoacyl-tRNAs, that are used as substrates for ribosomal protein biosynthesis. In addition to full length aaRS genes, genomes of many organisms are sprinkled with truncated genes encoding single-domain aaRS-like proteins, which often have relinquished their canonical role in genetic code translation. We have identified the genes for putative seryl-tRNA synthetase homologs widespread in bacterial genomes and characterized three of them biochemically and structurally. The proteins encoded are homologous to the catalytic domain of highly diverged, atypical seryl-tRNA synthetases (aSerRSs) found only in methanogenic archaea and are deprived of the tRNA-binding domain. Remarkably, in

SUBMITTER: Mocibob M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2930448 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature