Summary

Ribosomes are large complexes of ribosomal proteins (RPs) and RNAs that catalyze protein synthesis. Perturbations and mutations that alter or delete RPs can cause diseases and can affect selectively the synthesis of some proteins but not of others. This selectivity raises the hypothesis that cells may build specialized ribosomes with different stoichiometries among RPs as a means of regulating protein synthesis. While such specialized ribosomes have been hypothesized for decades, there was no direct evidence for their existence in unperturbed wild--type cells. We provided such evidence in yeast and mouse stem cells. We showed that the RP stoichiometry depends on the growth-conditions and on the number of ribosomes bound per mRNA. This variability in the RP stoichiometry correlates to fitness and to growth-rate-dependent RP transcription.

Specialized ribosomes in wild type mouse and yeast cells

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Processed Data
- Color-Coded 3D ribosome structures: PyMOL PDB Files
- Color-Coded 3D ribosome structure: Movie [20 MB]
- Color-Coded 3D ribosome structure: HD Movie [26 MB]
Raw MS Data

Slavov N.^✉, Semrau S., Airoldi E., Budnik B., van Oudenaarden A. (2015)
Differential stoichiometry among core ribosomal proteins
Cell Reports, vol. 13 PDF | SI | Summary | TiBS Spotlight