Abstract
Aminoacyl-tRNAs (aa-tRNAs) are selected by the messenger RNA programmed ribosome in ternary complex with elongation factor Tu (EF-Tu) and GTP and then, again, in a proofreading step after GTP hydrolysis on EF-Tu. We use tRNA mutants with different affinities for EF-Tu to demonstrate that proofreading of aa-tRNAs occurs in two consecutive steps. First, aa-tRNAs in ternary complex with EF-Tu·GDP are selected in a step where the accuracy increases linearly with increasing aa-tRNA affinity to EF-Tu. Then, following dissociation of EF-Tu·GDP from the ribosome, the accuracy is further increased in a second and apparently EF-Tu−independent step. Our findings identify the molecular basis of proofreading in bacteria, highlight the pivotal role of EF-Tu for fast and accurate protein synthesis, and illustrate the importance of multistep substrate selection in intracellular processing of genetic information.
Funder
Knut och Alice Wallenbergs Stiftelse
Swedish Research Council Formas
Publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Cited by
46 articles.
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