2ag6: Difference between revisions

[[Image:2ag6.gif|left|200px]]<br /><applet load="2ag6" size="350" color="white" frame="true" align="right" spinBox="true"  

Recently, tRNA aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase pairs have been evolved that allow one to genetically encode a large array of unnatural amino acids in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms. We have determined the crystal structures of two substrate-bound Methanococcus jannaschii tyrosyl aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases that charge the unnatural amino acids p-bromophenylalanine and 3-(2-naphthyl)alanine (NpAla). A comparison of these structures with the substrate-bound WT synthetase, as well as a mutant synthetase that charges p-acetylphenylalanine, shows that altered specificity is due to both side-chain and backbone rearrangements within the active site that modify hydrogen bonds and packing interactions with substrate, as well as disrupt the alpha8-helix, which spans the WT active site. The high degree of structural plasticity that is observed in these aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases is rarely found in other mutant enzymes with altered specificities and provides an explanation for the surprising adaptability of the genetic code to novel amino acids.

2AG6 is a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_protein Single protein] structure of sequence from [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methanocaldococcus_jannaschii Methanocaldococcus jannaschii] with <scene name='pdbligand=4BF:'>4BF</scene> as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ligand ligand]. Active as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyrosine--tRNA_ligase Tyrosine--tRNA ligase], with EC number [http://www.brenda-enzymes.info/php/result_flat.php4?ecno=6.1.1.1 6.1.1.1] Full crystallographic information is available from [http://oca.weizmann.ac.il/oca-bin/ocashort?id=2AG6 OCA].  

[[Category: Schultz, P G.]]

[[Category: Turner, J M.]]

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