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Science 24 May 2002:
Vol. 296. no. 5572, pp. 1459 - 1462
DOI: 10.1126/science.1069588
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Reports

Pyrrolysine Encoded by UAG in Archaea: Charging of a UAG-Decoding Specialized tRNA

Gayathri Srinivasan, Carey M. James, Joseph A. Krzycki*

Pyrrolysine is a lysine derivative encoded by the UAG codon in methylamine methyltransferase genes of Methanosarcina barkeri. Near a methyltransferase gene cluster is the pylT gene, which encodes an unusual transfer RNA (tRNA) with a CUA anticodon. The adjacent pylS gene encodes a class II aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase that charges the pylT-derived tRNA with lysine but is not closely related to known lysyl-tRNA synthetases. Homologs of pylS and pylT are found in a Gram-positive bacterium. Charging a tRNACUA with lysine is a likely first step in translating UAG amber codons as pyrrolysine in certain methanogens. Our results indicate that pyrrolysine is the 22nd genetically encoded natural amino acid.

Department of Microbiology, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
*   To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: Krzycki.1{at}osu.edu

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