Native polysomes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in liquid solution observed by atomic force microscopy

The native polysomes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae were visualized in liquid solution by atomic force microscopy without external contrasting, such as shadowing and negative staining. This study showed native polysomes as lined particle with a height of ca. 27 nm, which is agreement with the height of 80S ribosomes in previous study. We found a small subparticle, located in a ring-shape or at the end of a linear structure, and visualized mRNA chains between adjacent ribosomes. Although the structures of polysomes have been studied for decades, it has remained difficult to visualize the native three-dimensional form. By the observation in liquid solution, we temporarily stopped the translation using an antibiotic to presenting the native three-dimensional structure and function of the polysomes. Our results provide not only new findings on native eukaryotic polysomes, but also great potential to visualize the influence of various environmental conditions on polysomes.