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An Integrated Approach for Microprotein Identification and Sequence Analysis
Published on: July 12, 2022
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Eukaryotic tRNA sequences present conserved and amino acid-specific structural signatures
Eric Westhof1, Bryan Thornlow2,3, Patricia P Chan2,3
1Université de Strasbourg, Institut de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, Architecture et Réactivité de l'ARN, CNRS UPR 9002, 2, allée Konrad Roentgen, F-67084 Strasbourg, France.
Nucleic Acids Research
|April 5, 2022
Summary
Conserved Guanosine-Uracil (GoU) pairs in transfer RNA (tRNA) stems are crucial across multicellular eukaryotes. These non-Watson-Crick base pairs influence amino acid decoding, tRNA folding, and may indicate specialized tRNA functions.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Genetics
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Metazoans possess numerous transfer RNA (tRNA) genes for amino acid decoding.
- tRNAs are grouped by amino acids and isoacceptors, aminoacylated by specific synthetases.
- Despite high gene numbers, conserved tRNA sequence motifs exist across multicellular eukaryotes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate conserved non-Watson-Crick base pairs, specifically Guanosine-Uracil (GoU) pairs, within tRNA helical stems.
- To understand the functional implications of conserved GoU pairs in tRNA structure and function.
- To explore the role of GoU pairs in amino acid identity, tRNA folding, and potential specialized functions.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of tRNA sequence alignments across multicellular eukaryotes.
- Identification and characterization of conserved GoU base pairs in the four helical stems of tRNAs.
- Correlation of GoU pair distribution with amino acid specificity, isodecoders, phylogenetic clades, and potential functions.
Main Results:
- Conserved GoU pairs are prevalent in tRNA helical stems across multicellular eukaryotes, extending across isoacceptors and isodecoders.
- Some GoU pairs are amino acid-specific, potentially serving as identity elements for aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases.
- Other GoU pairs are conserved across multiple amino acids, suggesting roles in general tRNA folding, or are anticodon/phylogenetically specific.
Conclusions:
- Conserved GoU pairs represent critical structural and functional elements in eukaryotic tRNAs.
- The distribution of GoU pairs suggests a balance between conserved functions essential for translation and specialized roles.
- These findings indicate the potential existence of specialized tRNAs for specific translation targets, cellular conditions, or alternative functions.
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