title: Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases and the evolution of coded peptide synthesis: the Thioester World.
abstract: Coded peptide synthesis must have been preceded by a prebiotic stage, in which thioesters played key roles. Fossils of the Thioester World are found in extant aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (AARSs). Indeed, studies of the editing function reveal that AARSs have a thiol-binding site in their catalytic modules. The thiol-binding site confers the ability to catalyze aminoacyl~coenzyme A thioester synthesis and peptide bond formation. Genomic comparisons show that AARSs are structurally related to proteins involved in sulfur and coenzyme A metabolisms and peptide bond synthesis. These findings point to the origin of the amino acid activation and peptide bond synthesis functions in the Thioester World and suggest that the present-day AARSs had originated from ancestral forms that were involved in noncoded thioester-dependent peptide synthesis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School, International Center for Public Health, Newark, NJ, USA.|Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Poznań, Poland.|Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland.
authors.forename: Hieronim
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jakubowski
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000603:Amino Acids, Sulfur / Q000138:chemical synthesis*; D000604:Amino Acyl-tRNA Synthetases / Q000737:chemistry*; D049148:Aminoacylation; D055162:Biocatalysis; D020134:Catalytic Domain; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D005815:Genetic Code; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D000069497:Origin of Life; D010452:Peptide Biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics; D013438:Sulfhydryl Compounds / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D000603:Amino Acids, Sulfur; D010455:Peptides; D013438:Sulfhydryl Compounds; D000604:Amino Acyl-tRNA Synthetases
keywords: aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase; coenzyme A; evolution; homocysteine editing; noncoded peptide synthesis; prebiotic chemistry