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Science 20 May 2005:
Vol. 308. no. 5725, pp. 1178 - 1180
DOI: 10.1126/science.1111408
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Reports

An Active Role for tRNA in Decoding Beyond Codon:Anticodon Pairing

Luisa Cochella and Rachel Green*

During transfer RNA (tRNA) selection, a cognate codon:anticodon interaction triggers a series of events that ultimately results in the acceptance of that tRNA into the ribosome for peptide-bond formation. High-fidelity discrimination between the cognate tRNA and near- and noncognate ones depends both on their differential dissociation rates from the ribosome and on specific acceleration of forward rate constants by cognate species. Here we show that a mutant tRNATrp carrying a single substitution in its D-arm achieves elevated levels of miscoding by accelerating these forward rate constants independent of codon:anticodon pairing in the decoding center. These data provide evidence for a direct role for tRNA in signaling its own acceptance during decoding and support its fundamental role during the evolution of protein synthesis.

Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: ragreen{at}jhmi.edu

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)