Selection of tRNA by the ribosome requires a transition from an open to a closed form
- PMID:12464183
- DOI: 10.1016/s0092-8674(02)01086-3
Selection of tRNA by the ribosome requires a transition from an open to a closed form
Abstract
A structural and mechanistic explanation for the selection of tRNAs by the ribosome has been elusive. Here, we report crystal structures of the 30S ribosomal subunit with codon and near-cognate tRNA anticodon stem loops bound at the decoding center and compare affinities of equivalent complexes in solution. In ribosomal interactions with near-cognate tRNA, deviation from Watson-Crick geometry results in uncompensated desolvation of hydrogen-bonding partners at the codon-anticodon minor groove. As a result, the transition to a closed form of the 30S induced by cognate tRNA is unfavorable for near-cognate tRNA unless paromomycin induces part of the rearrangement. We conclude that stabilization of a closed 30S conformation is required for tRNA selection, and thereby structurally rationalize much previous data on translational fidelity.
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