Comparison of the frequency of functional SH3 domains with different limited sets of amino acids using mRNA display.

ABSTRACT: Although modern proteins consist of 20 different amino acids, it has been proposed that primordial proteins consisted of a small set of amino acids, and additional amino acids have gradually been recruited into the genetic code. This hypothesis has recently been supported by comparative genome sequence analysis, but no direct experimental approach has been reported. Here, we utilized a novel experimental approach to test a hypothesis that native-like globular proteins might be easily simplified by a set of putative primitive amino acids with retention of its structure and function than by a set of putative new amino acids. We performed in vitro selection of a functional SH3 domain as a model from partially randomized libraries with different sets of amino acids using mRNA display. Conseque

SUBMITTER: Tanaka J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3061877 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature