title: Pyrrolysyl-tRNA synthetase variants reveal ancestral aminoacylation function.
abstract: Pyrrolysyl-tRNA synthetase (PylRS) is a class IIc aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase that is related to phenylalanyl-tRNA synthetase (PheRS). Genetic selection provided PylRS variants with a broad range of specificity for diverse non-canonical amino acids (ncAAs). One variant is a specific phenylalanine-incorporating enzyme. Structural models of the PylRSamino acid complex show that the small pocket size and π-interaction play an important role in specific recognition of Phe and the engineered PylRS active site resembles that of Escherichia coli PheRS.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8114, USA.
authors.forename: Jae-hyeong
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Ko
authors.forename: Yane-Shih
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Akiyoshi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Li-Tao
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Dieter
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Söll
authors.forename: Takuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Umehara
mesh_terms: D000604:Amino Acyl-tRNA Synthetases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D049148:Aminoacylation; D003062:Codon; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000201:enzymology; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D008239:Lysine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000378:metabolism; D009154:Mutation; D013379:Substrate Specificity
chemical_list: D003062:Codon; D000604:Amino Acyl-tRNA Synthetases; C456839:pyrrolysine; D008239:Lysine
keywords: Non-canonical amino acid; Phenylalanyl-tRNA synthetase; Pyrrolysyl-tRNA synthetase; Superfolder green fluorescent protein