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Updated: Apr 30, 2026

Xenopus laevis as a Model to Identify Translation Impairment
Published on: September 27, 2015
Regulation of cap-dependent translation by eIF4E inhibitory proteins
Joel D Richter1, Nahum Sonenberg
1Program in Molecular Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01605, USA. joel.richter@umassmed.edu
Abstract:
Eukaryotic messenger RNAs contain a modified guanosine, termed a cap, at their 5' ends. Translation of mRNAs requires the binding of an initiation factor, eIF4E, to the cap structure. Here, we describe a family of proteins that through a shared sequence regulate cap-dependent translation. The biological importance of this translational regulation is immense, and affects such processes as cell growth, development, oncogenic transformation and perhaps even axon pathfinding and memory consolidation.
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