Loss of Deg1/Pus3 and concomitant elimination of pseudouridine in tRNA at positions 38 and 39 (ψ38/39) was shown to specifically impair the function of tRNA^Gln_UUG under conditions of temperature-induced down-regulation of wobble uridine thiolation in budding yeast and is linked to intellectual disability in humans. To further characterize the differential importance of the frequent ψ38/39 modification for tRNAs in yeast, we analyzed the in vivo function of non-sense suppressor tRNAs SUP4 and sup70-65 in the absence of the modifier. In the tRNA^Tyr_GψA variant SUP4, UAA read-through is enabled due to an anticodon mutation (UψA), whereas sup70-65 is a mutant form of tRNA^Gln_CUG (SUP70) that mediates UAG decoding due to a mutation of the anticodon-loop closing base pair (G31:C39 to A31:C39). While SUP4 function is unaltered in deg1/pus3 mutants, the ability of sup70-65 to mediate non-sense suppression and to complement a genomic deletion of the essential SUP70 gene is severely compromised. These results and the differential suppression of growth defects in deg1 mutants by multi-copy SUP70 or tQ(UUG) are consistent with the interpretation that ψ38 is most important for tRNA^Gln_UUG function under heat stress but becomes crucial for tRNA^Gln_CUG as well when the anticodon loop is destabilized by the sup70-65 mutation. Thus, ψ38/39 may protect the anticodon loop configuration from disturbances by loss of other modifications or base changes.

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Klassen R, Schaffrath R

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