Ribosome structure insight
Ribosomes are large molecular machines that cells use to assemble proteins. They pair up copies of the genetic instructions with amino-acid bearing transfer molecules, called tRNA, to add amino acids to the growing protein chain in the correct order. A large number of natural antibiotics work by binding to bacterial ribosomes and disrupting protein synthesis. Dr Ramakrishnan and colleagues from the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, have solved the molecular structure of one of the two ribosome subunits, both alone and bound to tRNA, in the presence and absence of antibiotics. The work shows how the ribosome recognises the correct tRNAs, ensuring that the correct genetic specification is accepted and the wrong ones rejected, and how antibiotic binding affects the process. A spinout company, RiboTargets has been set up to commercialise the work by developing drugs designed to overcome antibiotic resistance in bacteria.
Science 2001; 292: 897-902