title: On the Ribosomal Density that Maximizes Protein Translation Rate.
abstract: During mRNA translation, several ribosomes attach to the same mRNA molecule simultaneously translating it into a protein. This pipelining increases the protein translation rate. A natural and important question is what ribosomal density maximizes the protein translation rate. Using mathematical models of ribosome flow along both a linear and a circular mRNA molecules we prove that typically the steady-state protein translation rate is maximized when the ribosomal density is one half of the maximal possible density. We discuss the implications of our results to endogenous genes under natural cellular conditions and also to synthetic biology.
authors.affiliation: School of Electrical Engineering, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv 69978, Israel.
authors.forename: Yoram
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zarai
authors.affiliation: School of Electrical Engineering and the Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv 69978, Israel.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Margaliot
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Biomedical Engineering and the Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv 69978, Israel.
authors.forename: Tamir
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tuller