title: Structure of transfer RNAs: similarity and variability.
abstract: Transfer RNAs (tRNAs) are ancient molecules whose origin goes back to the beginning of life on Earth. Key partners in the ribosome-translation machinery, tRNAs read genetic information on messenger RNA and deliver codon specified amino acids attached to their distal 3'-extremity for peptide bond synthesis on the ribosome. In addition to this universal function, tRNAs participate in a wealth of other biological processes and undergo intricate maturation events. Our understanding of tRNA biology has been mainly phenomenological, but ongoing progress in structural biology is giving a robust physico-chemical basis that explains many facets of tRNA functions. Advanced sequence analysis of tRNA genes and their RNA transcripts have uncovered rules that underly tRNA 2D folding and 3D L-shaped architecture, as well as provided clues about their evolution. The increasing number of X-ray structures of free, protein- and ribosome-bound tRNA, reveal structural details accounting for the identity of the 22 tRNA families (one for each proteinogenic amino acid) and for the multifunctionality of a given family. Importantly, the structural role of post-transcriptional tRNA modifications is being deciphered. On the other hand, the plasticity of tRNA structure during function has been illustrated using a variety of technical approaches that allow dynamical insights. The large range of structural properties not only allows tRNAs to be the key actors of translation, but also sustain a diversity of unrelated functions from which only a few have already been pinpointed. Many surprises can still be expected.
authors.affiliation: Architecture et Réactivité de l'ARN, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, IBMC, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Giegé
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Jühling
authors.forename: Joern
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pütz
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Stadler
authors.forename: Claude
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sauter
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Florentz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D012343:RNA, Transfer / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D012343:RNA, Transfer