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Title: Ends of the line for tmRNA-SmpB

Journal Article · · Frontiers in Microbiology
 [1];  [1];  [1]
  1. Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States). Department of Systems Biology

Genes for the RNA tmRNA and protein SmpB, partners in the trans-translation process that rescues stalled ribosomes, have previously been found in all bacteria and some organelles. We validate recent identification of tmRNA homologs in oomycete mitochondria by finding partner genes from oomycete nuclei that target SmpB to the mitochondrion. Exhaustive search now identifies a small number of complete, often highly derived, bacterial genomes that appear to lack a functional copy of one or the other partner gene (but not both). Three groups with reduced genomes have lost the central loop of SmpB, which is thought to improve alanylation and EF-Tu activation: Carsonella, Hodgkinia and the hemplasmas (hemotropic Mycoplasma). Carsonella has also lost the SmpB C-terminal tail, thought to stimulate the decoding center of the ribosome. Carsonella moreover exhibits gene overlap such that tmRNA maturation should produce a non-stop smpB mRNA, and one isolate exhibits complete degradation of the tmRNA gene yet its smpB shows no evidence for relaxed selective constraint. After loss of the SmpB central loop in the hemoplasmas, a subclade apparently lost tmRNA. At least some of the tmRNA/SmpB-deficient strains appear to further lack the ArfA and ArfB backup systems for ribosome rescue. The most frequent neighbors of smpB are the tmRNA gene, a ratA/rnfH unit, and the gene for RNaseR, a known physical and functional partner of tmRNA-SmpB. The tmRNA Website has moved and been updated, adding an SmpB sequence database (http://bioinformatics.sandia.gov/tmrna).

Research Organization:
Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC04-94AL85000
OSTI ID:
1137319
Report Number(s):
SAND2014-4976J; 523896
Journal Information:
Frontiers in Microbiology, Vol. 5; Related Information: Proposed for publication in Frontiers in Microbiology.; ISSN 1664-302X
Publisher:
Frontiers Research FoundationCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 26 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (15)

A new mechanism for ribosome rescue can recruit RF1 or RF2 to non-stop ribosomes posted_content January 2018
How a circularized tmRNA moves through the ribosome journal February 2019
A New Mechanism for Ribosome Rescue Can Recruit RF1 or RF2 to Nonstop Ribosomes journal December 2018
Human Cells Require Non-stop Ribosome Rescue Activity in Mitochondria journal March 2016
Cicada Endosymbionts Have tRNAs That Are Correctly Processed Despite Having Genomes That Do Not Encode All of the tRNA Processing Machinery journal June 2019
The tmRNA website journal November 2014
Mechanisms of ribosome rescue in bacteria journal April 2015
Cicada endosymbionts contain tRNAs that are processed despite having genomes that lack tRNA processing activities posted_content January 2018
Islander: a database of precisely mapped genomic islands in tRNA and tmRNA genes journal November 2014
Characterization and induction of prophages in human gut-associated Bifidobacterium hosts journal August 2018
The tmRNA Website journal January 1998
The tmRNA Website journal January 2000
Horizontal Acquisition and Transcriptional Integration of Novel Genes in Mosquito-Associated Spiroplasma journal November 2017
Release of Nonstop Ribosomes Is Essential journal December 2014
Clicking on trans-translation drug targets journal May 2015

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