Structural and mutational studies of the recognition of the arginine tRNA-specific major identity element, A20, by arginyl-tRNA synthetase.

ABSTRACT: Arginyl-tRNA synthetase (ArgRS) recognizes two major identity elements of tRNA(Arg): A20, located at the outside corner of the L-shaped tRNA, and C35, the second letter of the anticodon. Only a few exceptional organisms, such as the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, lack A20 in tRNA(Arg). In the present study, we solved the crystal structure of a typical A20-recognizing ArgRS from Thermus thermophilus at 2.3 A resolution. The structure of the T. thermophilus ArgRS was found to be similar to that of the previously reported S. cerevisiae ArgRS, except for short insertions and a concomitant conformational change in the N-terminal domain. The structure of the yeast ArgRS.tRNA(Arg) complex suggested that two residues in the unique N-terminal domain, Tyr(77) and Asn(79), which are phylogenetically

SUBMITTER: Shimada A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC61076 | biostudies-literature | 2001 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature