Étude de la reconnaissance des codons stop par le facteur de terminaison de la traduction eucaryote eRF1

PARIS-BIUSJ-Thèses (751052125) / SudocPARIS-BIUSJ-Physique recherche (751052113) / SudocSudocFranceF

Stop codon selection in eukaryotic translation termination: comparison of the discriminating potential between human and ciliate eRF1s

During eukaryotic translation termination, eRF1 responds to three stop codons. However, in ciliates with variant genetic codes, only one or two codons function as a stop signal. To localize the region of ciliate eRF1 implicated in stop codon discrimination, we have constructed ciliate–human hybrid eRF1s by swapping regions of human eRF1 for the equivalent region of ciliate Euplotes eRF1. We have examined the formation of a cross-link between recombinant eRF1s and mRNA analogs containing the photoactivable 4-thiouridine (s(4)U) at the first position of stop and control sense codons. With human eRF1, this cross-link can be detected only when either stop or UGG codons are located in the ribosomal A site. Here we show that the cross-link of the Euplotes–human hybrid eRF1 is restricted to mRNAs containing UAG and UAA codons, and that the entire N-terminal domain of Euplotes eRF1 is involved in discriminating against UGA and UGG. On the basis of these results, we discuss the steps of the selection process that determine the accuracy of stop codon recognition in eukaryotes

Stop codon recognition in ciliates: Euplotes release factor does not respond to reassigned UGA codon

In eukaryotes, the polypeptide release factor 1 (eRF1) is involved in translation termination at all three stop codons. However, the mechanism for decoding stop codons remains unknown. A direct interaction of eRF1 with the stop codons has been postulated. Recent studies focus on eRF1 from ciliates in which some stop codons are reassigned to sense codons. Using an in vitro assay based on mammalian ribosomes, we show that eRF1 from the ciliate Euplotes aediculatus responds to UAA and UAG as stop codons and lacks the capacity to decipher the UGA codon, which encodes cysteine in this organism. This result strongly suggests that in ciliates with variant genetic codes eRF1 does not recognize the reassigned codons. Recent hypotheses describing stop codon discrimination by eRF1 are not fully consistent with the set of eRF1 sequences available so far and require direct experimental testing

A Highly Conserved Region Essential for NMD in the Upf2 N-Terminal Domain

International audienceUpf1, Upf2, and Upf3 are the principal regulators of nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD), a cytoplasmic surveillance pathway that accelerates the degradation of mRNAs undergoing premature translation termination. These three proteins interact with each other, the ribosome, the translation termination machinery, and multiple mRNA decay factors, but the precise mechanism allowing the selective detection and degradation of nonsense-containing transcripts remains elusive. Here, we have determined the crystal structure of the N-terminal mIF4G domain from Saccharomyces cerevisiae Upf2 and identified a highly conserved region in this domain that is essential for NMD and independent of Upf2's binding sites for Upf1 and Upf3. Mutations within this conserved region not only inactivate NMD but also disrupt Upf2 binding to specific proteins, including Dbp6, a DEAD-box helicase. Although current models indicate that Upf2 functions principally as an activator of Upf1 and a bridge between Upf1 and Upf3, our data suggest that it may also serve as a platform for the association of additional factors that play roles in premature translation termination and NMD