Open AccessAmbiguous decoding of the CUG codon alters the functionality of the Candida albicans translation initiation factor 4E
Author(s) -
Feketová Zuzana,
Mašek Tomáš,
Vopálenský Václav,
Pospíšek Martin
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
fems yeast research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.991
H-Index - 92
eISSN - 1567-1364
pISSN - 1567-1356
DOI - 10.1111/j.1567-1364.2010.00629.x
Subject(s) - biology , candida albicans , translation (biology) , eukaryotic translation , start codon , codon usage bias , initiation factor , decoding methods , genetics , computational biology , messenger rna , gene , genome , computer science , telecommunications
The eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E is an essential and highly conserved protein. As a part of the translational machinery, it plays a key role in the recruitment of mRNA via binding to its m 7 GpppN 5′ terminal cap structure. The opportunistic human pathogen Candida albicans is the only known eukaryotic organism with the ability to survive defects in mRNA capping, which suggests unique features of its eIF4E protein. Here, we provide the first experimental evidence of the function of the C. albicans putative gene orf19.7626 as an eIF4E protein. We also show that Ca4E Leu116 and Ca4E Ser116 protein variants, both of which occur naturally in C. albicans due to the ambiguous decoding of the CUG 116 codon, display different sensitivities to elevated temperature. Our results clearly point to the importance of the S4–H4 loop for the function of the Ca4E translation initiation factor, and suggest the possible regulatory role of the codon‐reading ambiguity within this loop in C. albicans . We proved Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a useful tool organism for studies of C. albicans translation initiation apparatus.