Mechanisms that ensure speed and fidelity in eukaryotic translation termination

How translation stops Protein synthesis concludes when a ribosome encounters a stop codon in a transcript, which triggers the recruitment of highly conserved release factors to liberate the protein product. Lawsonet al . used traditional biochemical methods and single-molecule fluorescence assays to track the interplay of release factors with ribosomes and reveal the molecular choreography of termination. They identified two distinct classes of effectors, small molecules and mRNA sequences, that directly inhibited the release factors and promoted stop codon readthrough. These findings may buttress ongoing efforts to treat diseases caused by premature stop codons, which cause 11% of all heritable human diseases. —DJ