Codon choice directs constitutive mRNA levels in trypanosomes.

ABSTRACT: Selective transcription of individual protein coding genes does not occur in trypanosomes and the cellular copy number of each mRNA must be determined post-transcriptionally. Here, we provide evidence that codon choice directs the levels of constitutively expressed mRNAs. First, a novel codon usage metric, the gene expression codon adaptation index (geCAI), was developed that maximised the relationship between codon choice and the measured abundance for a transcriptome. Second, geCAI predictions of mRNA levels were tested using differently coded GFP transgenes and were successful over a 25-fold range, similar to the variation in endogenous mRNAs. Third, translation was necessary for the accelerated mRNA turnover resulting from codon choice. Thus, in trypanosomes, the information determinin

SUBMITTER: de Freitas Nascimento J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5896880 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature