RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 The Structural Basis of the Genetic Code: Amino Acid Recognition by Aminoacyl-tRNA Synthetases
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 606459
DO 10.1101/606459
A1 Florian Kaiser
A1 Sarah Krautwurst
A1 Sebastian Salentin
A1 V. Joachim Haupt
A1 Christoph Leberecht
A1 Sebastian Bittrich
A1 Dirk Labudde
A1 Michael Schroeder
YR 2020
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/04/20/606459.abstract
AB Storage and directed transfer of information is the key requirement for the development of life. Yet any information stored on our genes is useless without its correct interpretation. The genetic code defines the rule set to decode this information. Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases are at the heart of this process. For the first time, we extensively characterize how these enzymes distinguish all natural amino acids based on the computational analysis of crystallographic structure data. The results of this meta-analysis show that the correct read-out of genetic information is a delicate interplay between the composition of the binding site, non-covalent interactions, error correction mechanisms, and steric effects.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.