title: Error propagation in E. coli protein synthesis.
abstract: A new approach to the error catastrophe theory, proposed by Leslie Orgel, is presented here. Our model is a development of previous models, but differs in several respects: the overall activity is assumed to be dependent on the error level, the effect of errors in the translating system, giving rise to additional errors in the succeeding generation of products, is explicitly included as a special term in our model, and scavenging enzymes are assumed to break down and eliminate products with a loose structure. Their efficiency is dependent on the error level. The model also takes into account the dilution of incorrect ribosomes and enzymes, and is described by a time-dependence in terms of ribosome/enzyme generations. The model and the contribution to the time development are discussed in the light of experiments on E. coli treated with streptomycin.
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D008433:Mathematics; D008954:Models, Biological; D013307:Streptomycin / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D013307:Streptomycin