Translation initiation factor eIF-5A (formerly called eIF-4D) is a small, highly conserved protein in eukaryotic cells that undergoes a unique modification at one of its lysine residues to form hypusine. eIF-5A stimulates in vitro the synthesis of methionyl-puromycin, a model reaction for formation of the first peptide bond. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae eIF-5A is encoded by two highly homologous genes, TIF51A and TIF51B, and each gene gives rise to two hypusinated isoelectric variants, eIF-5Aa (more acidic) and eIF-5Ab (more basic). In order to study the structural and functional differences between the two isoforms, both isoelectric forms were purified from a yeast strain overexpressing TIF51A and were shown to stimulate identically the synthesis of methionyl-puromycin in a heterologous mammalian assay system. Pulse-chase labeling of yeast cells with [35S]methionine showed that the basic form, eIF-5Ab, is a precursor form of the acidic form, eIF-5Aa. Immunoprecipitation of 32P-labeled cell lysates with rabbit antibodies specific for yeast eIF-5A, phosphoprotein phosphatase treatment of eIF-5Aa, and phosphoamino acid analysis demonstrated that eIF-5Aa is generated by phosphorylation of eIF-5Ab on serine. Therefore eIF-5A undergoes two post-translational modifications, hypusination and phosphorylation, where the activity of the factor is dependent on the first but is not influenced in vitro by the second.

• PMID: 8325852
• PubMed

Reference Type

Journal Article | Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't | Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

Authors

Kang HA, Schwelberger HG, Hershey JW

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