Rumicidins are a family of mammalian host-defense peptides plugging the 70S ribosome exit tunnel.

The antimicrobial resistance crisis along with challenges of antimicrobial discovery revealed the vital necessity to develop new antibiotics. Many of the animal proline-rich antimicrobial peptides (PrAMPs) inhibit the process of bacterial translation. Genome projects allowed to identify immune-related genes encoding animal host defense peptides.

Cryo-EM structure of the inactive ribosome complex accumulated in chick embryo cells in cold-stress conditions.

Here, we present the high-resolution structure of the Gallus gallus 80S ribosome obtained from cold-treated chicken embryos. The translationally inactive ribosome complex contains elongation factor eEF2 with GDP, SERPINE1 mRNA binding protein 1 (SERBP1) and deacylated tRNA in the P/E position, showing common features with complexes already described in mammals. Modeling of most expansion segments of G.

Structural conservation of antibiotic interaction with ribosomes.

The ribosome is a major target for clinically used antibiotics, but multidrug resistant pathogenic bacteria are making our current arsenal of antimicrobials obsolete. Here we present cryo-electron-microscopy structures of 17 distinct compounds from six different antibiotic classes bound to the bacterial ribosome at resolutions ranging from 1.6 to 2.

mRNA decoding in human is kinetically and structurally distinct from bacteria.

In all species, ribosomes synthesize proteins by faithfully decoding messenger RNA (mRNA) nucleotide sequences using aminoacyl-tRNA substrates. Current knowledge of the decoding mechanism derives principally from studies on bacterial systems. Although key features are conserved across evolution, eukaryotes achieve higher-fidelity mRNA decoding than bacteria.

Directed evolution of the rRNA methylating enzyme Cfr reveals molecular basis of antibiotic resistance.

Alteration of antibiotic binding sites through modification of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) is a common form of resistance to ribosome-targeting antibiotics. The rRNA-modifying enzyme Cfr methylates an adenosine nucleotide within the peptidyl transferase center, resulting in the C-8 methylation of A2503 (mA2503). Acquisition of results in resistance to eight classes of ribosome-targeting antibiotics.

Structure of Hsp90-Hsp70-Hop-GR reveals the Hsp90 client-loading mechanism.

Maintaining a healthy proteome is fundamental for the survival of all organisms. Integral to this are Hsp90 and Hsp70, molecular chaperones that together facilitate the folding, remodelling and maturation of the many 'client proteins' of Hsp90. The glucocorticoid receptor (GR) is a model client protein that is strictly dependent on Hsp90 and Hsp70 for activity.

Mechanism for the activation of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase receptor.

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) is a receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) that regulates important functions in the central nervous system. The ALK gene is a hotspot for chromosomal translocation events that result in several fusion proteins that cause a variety of human malignancies. Somatic and germline gain-of-function mutations in ALK were identified in paediatric neuroblastoma.

Structural basis of early translocation events on the ribosome.

Peptide-chain elongation during protein synthesis entails sequential aminoacyl-tRNA selection and translocation reactions that proceed rapidly (2-20 per second) and with a low error rate (around 10 to 10 at each step) over thousands of cycles. The cadence and fidelity of ribosome transit through mRNA templates in discrete codon increments is a paradigm for movement in biological systems that must hold for diverse mRNA and tRNA substrates across domains of life. Here we use single-molecule fluorescence methods to guide the capture of structures of early translocation events on the bacterial ribosome.

RbfA Is Involved in Two Important Stages of 30S Subunit Assembly: Formation of the Central Pseudoknot and Docking of Helix 44 to the Decoding Center.

Ribosome biogenesis is a highly coordinated and complex process that requires numerous assembly factors that ensure prompt and flawless maturation of ribosomal subunits. Despite the increasing amount of data collected, the exact role of most assembly factors and mechanistic details of their operation remain unclear, mainly due to the shortage of high-resolution structural information. Here, using cryo-electron microscopy, we characterized 30S ribosomal particles isolated from an   strain with a deleted gene for the RbfA factor.

Structural insights into the regulation of human serine palmitoyltransferase complexes.

Sphingolipids are essential lipids in eukaryotic membranes. In humans, the first and rate-limiting step of sphingolipid synthesis is catalyzed by the serine palmitoyltransferase holocomplex, which consists of catalytic components (SPTLC1 and SPTLC2) and regulatory components (ssSPTa and ORMDL3). However, the assembly, substrate processing and regulation of the complex are unclear.

Allosteric coupling between α-rings of the 20S proteasome.

Proteasomal machinery performs essential regulated protein degradation in eukaryotes. Classic proteasomes are symmetric, with a regulatory ATPase docked at each end of the cylindrical 20S. Asymmetric complexes are also present in cells, either with a single ATPase or with an ATPase and non-ATPase at two opposite ends.

Insights into the improved macrolide inhibitory activity from the high-resolution cryo-EM structure of dirithromycin bound to the 70S ribosome.

Macrolides are one of the most successful and widely used classes of antibacterials, which kill or stop the growth of pathogenic bacteria by binding near the active site of the ribosome and interfering with protein synthesis. Dirithromycin is a derivative of the prototype macrolide erythromycin with additional hydrophobic side chain. In our recent study, we have discovered that the side chain of dirithromycin forms lone pair-π stacking interaction with the aromatic imidazole ring of the His69 residue in ribosomal protein uL4 of the 70S ribosome.

Assessment of the nucleotide modifications in the high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy structure of the Escherichia coli 50S subunit.

Post-transcriptional ribosomal RNA (rRNA) modifications are present in all organisms, but their exact functional roles and positions are yet to be fully characterized. Modified nucleotides have been implicated in the stabilization of RNA structure and regulation of ribosome biogenesis and protein synthesis. In some instances, rRNA modifications can confer antibiotic resistance.

eIF2B-catalyzed nucleotide exchange and phosphoregulation by the integrated stress response.

The integrated stress response (ISR) tunes the rate of protein synthesis. Control is exerted by phosphorylation of the general translation initiation factor eIF2. eIF2 is a guanosine triphosphatase that becomes activated by eIF2B, a two-fold symmetric and heterodecameric complex that functions as eIF2's dedicated nucleotide exchange factor.

Visualizing the Role of 2'-OH rRNA Methylations in the Human Ribosome Structure.

Chemical modifications of RNA have recently gained new attention in biological sciences. They occur notably on messenger RNA (mRNA) and ribosomal RNA (rRNA) and are important for various cellular functions, but their molecular mechanism of action is yet to be understood in detail. Ribosomes are large ribonucleoprotein assemblies, which synthesize proteins in all organisms.

Structural Basis for NusA Stabilized Transcriptional Pausing.

Transcriptional pausing by RNA polymerases (RNAPs) is a key mechanism to regulate gene expression in all kingdoms of life and is a prerequisite for transcription termination. The essential bacterial transcription factor NusA stimulates both pausing and termination of transcription, thus playing a central role. Here, we report single-particle electron cryo-microscopy reconstructions of NusA bound to paused E.

Volta phase plate data collection facilitates image processing and cryo-EM structure determination.

A current bottleneck in structure determination of macromolecular complexes by cryo electron microscopy (cryo-EM) is the large amount of data needed to obtain high-resolution 3D reconstructions, including through sorting into different conformations and compositions with advanced image processing. Additionally, it may be difficult to visualize small ligands that bind in sub-stoichiometric levels. Volta phase plates (VPP) introduce a phase shift in the contrast transfer and drastically increase the contrast of the recorded low-dose cryo-EM images while preserving high frequency information.

Structure of the human TRPM4 ion channel in a lipid nanodisc.

Transient receptor potential (TRP) melastatin 4 (TRPM4) is a widely expressed cation channel associated with a variety of cardiovascular disorders. TRPM4 is activated by increased intracellular calcium in a voltage-dependent manner but, unlike many other TRP channels, is permeable to monovalent cations only. Here we present two structures of full-length human TRPM4 embedded in lipid nanodiscs at ~3-angstrom resolution, as determined by single-particle cryo-electron microscopy.

Structure of the transcription activator target Tra1 within the chromatin modifying complex SAGA.

The transcription co-activator complex SAGA is recruited to gene promoters by sequence-specific transcriptional activators and by chromatin modifications to promote pre-initiation complex formation. The yeast Tra1 subunit is the major target of acidic activators such as Gal4, VP16, or Gcn4 but little is known about its structural organization. The 430 kDa Tra1 subunit and its human homolog the transformation/transcription domain-associated protein TRRAP are members of the phosphatidyl 3-kinase-related kinase (PIKK) family.

Visualization of chemical modifications in the human 80S ribosome structure.

Chemical modifications of human ribosomal RNA (rRNA) are introduced during biogenesis and have been implicated in the dysregulation of protein synthesis, as is found in cancer and other diseases. However, their role in this phenomenon is unknown. Here we visualize more than 130 individual rRNA modifications in the three-dimensional structure of the human ribosome, explaining their structural and functional roles.

Focused classification and refinement in high-resolution cryo-EM structural analysis of ribosome complexes.

Cryo electron microscopy (cryo-EM) historically has had a strong impact on the structural and mechanistic analysis of protein synthesis by the prokaryotic and eukaryotic ribosomes. Vice versa, studying ribosomes has helped moving forwards many methodological aspects in single particle cryo-EM, at the level of automated data collection and image processing including advanced techniques for particle sorting to address structural and compositional heterogeneity. Here we review some of the latest ribosome structures, where cryo-EM allowed gaining unprecedented insights based on 3D structure sorting with focused classification and refinement methods helping to reach local resolution levels better than 3Å.

The integrative role of cryo electron microscopy in molecular and cellular structural biology.

After gradually moving away from preparation methods prone to artefacts such as plastic embedding and negative staining for cell sections and single particles, the field of cryo electron microscopy (cryo-EM) is now heading off at unprecedented speed towards high-resolution analysis of biological objects of various sizes. This 'revolution in resolution' is happening largely thanks to new developments of new-generation cameras used for recording the images in the cryo electron microscope which have much increased sensitivity being based on complementary metal oxide semiconductor devices. Combined with advanced image processing and 3D reconstruction, the cryo-EM analysis of nucleoprotein complexes can provide unprecedented insights at molecular and atomic levels and address regulatory mechanisms in the cell.

Structure-function insights reveal the human ribosome as a cancer target for antibiotics.

Many antibiotics in clinical use target the bacterial ribosome by interfering with the protein synthesis machinery. However, targeting the human ribosome in the case of protein synthesis deregulations such as in highly proliferating cancer cells has not been investigated at the molecular level up to now. Here we report the structure of the human 80S ribosome with a eukaryote-specific antibiotic and show its anti-proliferative effect on several cancer cell lines.

Ribosomal 18S rRNA base pairs with mRNA during eukaryotic translation initiation.

Eukaryotic mRNAs often contain a Kozak sequence that helps tether the ribosome to the AUG start codon. The mRNA of histone H4 (h4) does not undergo classical ribosome scanning but has evolved a specific tethering mechanism. The cryo-EM structure of the rabbit ribosome complex with mouse h4 shows that the mRNA forms a folded, repressive structure at the mRNA entry site on the 40S subunit next to the tip of helix 16 of 18S ribosomal RNA (rRNA).

eIF3 Peripheral Subunits Rearrangement after mRNA Binding and Start-Codon Recognition.

mRNA translation initiation in eukaryotes requires the cooperation of a dozen eukaryotic initiation factors (eIFs) forming several complexes, which leads to mRNA attachment to the small ribosomal 40S subunit, mRNA scanning for start codon, and accommodation of initiator tRNA at the 40S P site. eIF3, composed of 13 subunits, 8 core (a, c, e, f, h, l, k, and m) and 5 peripheral (b, d, g, i, and j), plays a central role during this process. Here we report a cryo-electron microscopy structure of a mammalian 48S initiation complex at 5.