Cryo-EM structure of the archaeal 50S ribosomal subunit in complex with initiation factor 6 and implications for ribosome evolution.

ABSTRACT: Translation of mRNA into proteins by the ribosome is universally conserved in all cellular life. The composition and complexity of the translation machinery differ markedly between the three domains of life. Organisms from the domain Archaea show an intermediate level of complexity, sharing several additional components of the translation machinery with eukaryotes that are absent in bacteria. One of these translation factors is initiation factor 6 (IF6), which associates with the large ribosomal subunit. We have reconstructed the 50S ribosomal subunit from the archaeon Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus in complex with archaeal IF6 at 6.6 Å resolution using cryo-electron microscopy (EM). The structure provides detailed architectural insights into the 50S ribosomal subunit from a methan

SUBMITTER: Greber BJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3879142 | biostudies-literature | 2012 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature