A faux 3'-UTR promotes aberrant termination and triggers nonsense-mediated mRNA decay

Nonsense-mediated messenger RNA decay (NMD) is triggered by premature translation termination, but the features distinguishing premature from normal termination are unknown. One model for NMD suggests that decay-inducing factors bound to mRNAs during early processing events are routinely removed by elongating ribosomes but remain associated with mRNAs when termination is premature, triggering rapid turnover. Recent experiments challenge this notion and suggest a model that posits that mRNA decay is activated by the intrinsically aberrant nature of premature termination. Here we use a primer extension inhibition (toeprinting) assay to delineate ribosome positioning and find that premature translation termination in yeast extracts is indeed aberrant. Ribosomes encountering premature UAA or UGA codons in the CAN1 mRNA fail to release and, instead, migrate to upstream AUGs. This anomaly depends on prior nonsense codon recognition and is eliminated in extracts derived from cells lacking the principal NMD factor, Upf1p, or by flanking the nonsense codon with a normal 3'-untranslated region (UTR). Tethered poly(A)-binding protein (Pab1p), used as a mimic of a normal 3'-UTR, recruits the termination factor Sup35p (eRF3) and stabilizes nonsense-containing mRNAs. These findings indicate that efficient termination and mRNA stability are dependent on a properly configured 3'-UTR.     

日本赭纤虫第一类肽链释放因子C端结构域分析

eRF1的C结构域与eRF3的C结构域相互作用对于蛋白质翻译终止过程中的快速反应至关重要.通过计算机同源建模对日本赭纤虫第一类肽链释放因子C结构域Bj-eRF1C进行结构模拟,发现在Bj-eRF1C结构域中有些肽段直接参与了eRF1-eRF3相互作用,特别是Bj-eRF1C结构域中V294和D297位点高度保守.通过定点突变与pull-down分析,表明在Bj-eRF1C结构域中V294和D297是eRF1-eRF3相互作用的关键位点.     

八肋游仆虫eRF1a的C端是肽链释放因子eRF3的结合区(英文)

真核生物蛋白质合成终止需要两类肽链释放因子,eRF1和eRF3.研究表明八肋游仆虫的两类肽链释放因子在体内和体外都能形成复合物,且第一类肽链释放因子eRF1a与第二类肽链释放因子eRF3的C端结合.为了确定eRF3在eRF1a上的结合区,本研究以八肋游仆虫第一类肽链释放因子eRF1a基因为模板,用PCR的方法获得了N端分别截短140和206个氨基酸的eRF1a片段,同时在这两个片段的3'端融合了编码6个组氨酸残基的核苷酸序列,将这两个序列分别插入原核表达载体pTWIN1,并构建重组表达质粒pTWIN1-eRF1aC1 his6和pTWIN1-eRF1 aC2his6,转入大肠杆菌BL21( DE3)中获得了可溶性表达,通过一步His60 Ni Superflow柱亲和层析,重组蛋白CBD-intein-eRF1 aC1 his6和CBD-intein-eRF1aC2 his6获得纯化.体外pull down分析显示eRF1aC1和eRF1aC2均能与八肋游仆虫第二类释放因子eRF3相互作用,这表明八肋游仆虫eRF1a的C端是肽链释放因子eRF3的结合区.     

Translation factors promote the formation of two states of the closed-loop mRNP

Efficient translation initiation and optimal stability of most eukaryotic messenger RNAs depends on the formation of a closed-loop structure and the resulting synergistic interplay between the 5' m(7)G cap and the 3' poly(A) tail. Evidence of eIF4G and Pab1 interaction supports the notion of a closed-loop mRNP, but the mechanistic events that lead to its formation and maintenance are still unknown. Here we use toeprinting and polysome profiling assays to delineate ribosome positioning at initiator AUG codons and ribosome-mRNA association, respectively, and find that two distinct stable (resistant to cap analogue) closed-loop structures are formed during initiation in yeast cell-free extracts. The integrity of both forms requires the mRNA cap and poly(A) tail, as well as eIF4E, eIF4G, Pab1 and eIF3, and is dependent on the length of both the mRNA and the poly(A) tail. Formation of the first structure requires the 48S ribosomal complex, whereas the second requires an 80S ribosome and the termination factors eRF3/Sup35 and eRF1/Sup45. The involvement of the termination factors is independent of a termination event.     

TOP mRNA及其5＇TOP序列的基因表达调控作用

TOP mRNA是以胞嘧啶为起始,紧接5～15个聚嘧啶序列的一类mRNA。它在脊椎动物细胞mRNA中占很大比重,是一类与编码核糖体蛋白、翻译延伸因子和起始因子等翻译元件相关的mRNA,其5＇TOP序列对细胞生长、分化、发育具有重要作用。目前的研究发现此类mRNA的表达受到mTOR信号转导路径的调控。并且它们可能通过与La或CNBP等反式作用因子的作用调控基因表达。     

Structural basis of highly conserved ribosome recycling in eukaryotes and archaea

Ribosome-driven protein biosynthesis is comprised of four phases: initiation, elongation, termination and recycling. In bacteria, ribosome recycling requires ribosome recycling factor and elongation factor G, and several structures of bacterial recycling complexes have been determined. In the eukaryotic and archaeal kingdoms, however, recycling involves the ABC-type ATPase ABCE1 and little is known about its structural basis. Here we present cryo-electron microscopy reconstructions of eukaryotic and archaeal ribosome recycling complexes containing ABCE1 and the termination factor paralogue Pelota. These structures reveal the overall binding mode of ABCE1 to be similar to canonical translation factors. Moreover, the iron-sulphur cluster domain of ABCE1 interacts with and stabilizes Pelota in a conformation that reaches towards the peptidyl transferase centre, thus explaining how ABCE1 may stimulate peptide-release activity of canonical termination factors. Using the mechanochemical properties of ABCE1, a conserved mechanism in archaea and eukaryotes is suggested that couples translation termination to recycling, and eventually to re-initiation.     

重组慢病毒介导的NMD途径因子UPF1和SMG1可诱导干扰细胞株的构建

无义介导的mRNA降解途径是一个比较完善的异常mRNA的降解机制,结合在外显子拼接复合体上的多种蛋白决定NMD途径对异常转录物的识别和降解的启动,其中UPF1和SMG1发挥主要功能.UPF1是一个RNA解旋酶和RNA依赖的ATP酶;而SMG1具有磷脂酰肌醇激酶活性,负责UPF1的磷酸化.本研究构建了含有UPF1和SMG-1基因发夹结构的诱导开关基因表达干扰质粒.利用慢病毒介导转化哺乳动物细胞HEK293T细胞得到重组病毒,经鉴定后感染细胞AD_293,目的基因在细胞中得以高效表达.通过继代培养和单克隆化,得到强力霉素诱导干扰UPF1和SMG-1表达的稳定细胞株.     

Translational control of intron splicing in eukaryotes

Most eukaryotic genes are interrupted by non-coding introns that must be accurately removed from pre-messenger RNAs to produce translatable mRNAs. Splicing is guided locally by short conserved sequences, but genes typically contain many potential splice sites, and the mechanisms specifying the correct sites remain poorly understood. In most organisms, short introns recognized by the intron definition mechanism cannot be efficiently predicted solely on the basis of sequence motifs. In multicellular eukaryotes, long introns are recognized through exon definition and most genes produce multiple mRNA variants through alternative splicing. The nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) pathway may further shape the observed sets of variants by selectively degrading those containing premature termination codons, which are frequently produced in mammals. Here we show that the tiny introns of the ciliate Paramecium tetraurelia are under strong selective pressure to cause premature termination of mRNA translation in the event of intron retention, and that the same bias is observed among the short introns of plants, fungi and animals. By knocking down the two P. tetraurelia genes encoding UPF1, a protein that is crucial in NMD, we show that the intrinsic efficiency of splicing varies widely among introns and that NMD activity can significantly reduce the fraction of unspliced mRNAs. The results suggest that, independently of alternative splicing, species with large intron numbers universally rely on NMD to compensate for suboptimal splicing efficiency and accuracy.     

Does Paramecium primaurelia use a different genetic code in its macronucleus?

It has long been known that messenger RNAs (mRNAs) of ciliates and in particular of Paramecium are not translated well in heterologous in vitro translation systems. Recently, we have demonstrated for Paramecium primaurelia that this phenomenon results from the presence of well-defined blocking sites in the coding sequences of almost all mRNAs, and that these sites are an intrinsic feature of the primary as opposed to the secondary structure of the mRNAs. Here we show that both the gene and the mRNA for the G surface antigen of P. primaurelia contain numerous TAA and TAG codons scattered throughout their coding sequences. We propose that these codons do not represent termination codons in P. primaurelia but instead code for glutamic acid or glutamine and that the in vitro translation of Paramecium mRNAs is blocked by their presence.     

A brain-specific microRNA regulates dendritic spine development

MicroRNAs are small, non-coding RNAs that control the translation of target messenger RNAs, thereby regulating critical aspects of plant and animal development. In the mammalian nervous system, the spatiotemporal control of mRNA translation has an important role in synaptic development and plasticity. Although a number of microRNAs have been isolated from the mammalian brain, neither the specific microRNAs that regulate synapse function nor their target mRNAs have been identified. Here we show that a brain-specific microRNA, miR-134, is localized to the synapto-dendritic compartment of rat hippocampal neurons and negatively regulates the size of dendritic spines--postsynaptic sites of excitatory synaptic transmission. This effect is mediated by miR-134 inhibition of the translation of an mRNA encoding a protein kinase, Limk1, that controls spine development. Exposure of neurons to extracellular stimuli such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor relieves miR-134 inhibition of Limk1 translation and in this way may contribute to synaptic development, maturation and/or plasticity.     

The ribosome uses two active mechanisms to unwind messenger RNA during translation

The ribosome translates the genetic information encoded in messenger RNA into protein. Folded structures in the coding region of an mRNA represent a kinetic barrier that lowers the peptide elongation rate, as the ribosome must disrupt structures it encounters in the mRNA at its entry site to allow translocation to the next codon. Such structures are exploited by the cell to create diverse strategies for translation regulation, such as programmed frameshifting, the modulation of protein expression levels, ribosome localization and co-translational protein folding. Although strand separation activity is inherent to the ribosome, requiring no exogenous helicases, its mechanism is still unknown. Here, using a single-molecule optical tweezers assay on mRNA hairpins, we find that the translation rate of identical codons at the decoding centre is greatly influenced by the GC content of folded structures at the mRNA entry site. Furthermore, force applied to the ends of the hairpin to favour its unfolding significantly speeds translation. Quantitative analysis of the force dependence of its helicase activity reveals that the ribosome, unlike previously studied helicases, uses two distinct active mechanisms to unwind mRNA structure: it destabilizes the helical junction at the mRNA entry site by biasing its thermal fluctuations towards the open state, increasing the probability of the ribosome translocating unhindered; and it mechanically pulls apart the mRNA single strands of the closed junction during the conformational changes that accompany ribosome translocation. The second of these mechanisms ensures a minimal basal rate of translation in the cell; specialized, mechanically stable structures are required to stall the ribosome temporarily. Our results establish a quantitative mechanical basis for understanding the mechanism of regulation of the elongation rate of translation by structured mRNAs.