Publications by authors named "Chintan Soni"
Using directed evolution, aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRSs) have been engineered to incorporate numerous noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs). Until now, the selection of such novel aaRS mutants has relied on the expression of a selectable reporter protein. However, such translation-dependent selections are incompatible with exotic monomers that are suboptimal substrates for the ribosome.
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- Sulfation is a common modification in eukaryotic proteins, but understanding its roles has been challenging due to limited methods for controlling its placement in proteins.
- Researchers have discovered that fluorosulfate can act as a precursor to sulfate, which can be easily converted to sulfate using hydroxamic acid in conditions similar to those in the body.
- By using light to activate hydroxamic acid, scientists can control the timing and location of sulfate addition in peptides, providing a new tool for studying the functions of sulfation in proteins.
The tyrosyl-tRNA synthetase (EcTyrRS)/tRNA pair offers an attractive platform for genetically encoding new noncanonical amino acids (ncAA) in eukaryotes. However, challenges associated with a eukaryotic selection system, which is needed to engineer the platform, have impeded its success in the past. Recently, using a facile -based selection system, we showed that EcTyrRS could be engineered in a strain where the endogenous tyrosyl pair was substituted with an archaeal counterpart.
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