Ribosomes are one of the largest molecular structures present in every cell of life and their size is highly correlated with organism complexity. Composed of both ribosomal protein and ribosomal RNA, ribosomes are the molecular machines that translate information encoded on messenger RNAs into functional proteins that perform processes essential to life. The unique ribosomal sequences, structures, and interactions of all of life?s organisms has made it a major focal point for antimicrobials. The known 3-dimensional structures of many ribosomes from across the tree of life will be used in this project to document the atomic characteristics of hundreds of thousands of atoms that comprise the ribosome to understand why the size of the ribosome is so highly correlated to species complexity and how their differences can be used to design new antimicrobials. This project will be conducted at the National Taiwan University under the guidance of Assistant Professor Dr. Chiaolong Hsiao who did his PhD thesis under the guidance of Professor Dr. Loren Williams who is currently the PhD advisor for the researcher of the proposed project.
The peptidyl-transferase and decoding centers of the ribosome are the catalytic components of the ribosome responsible for the formation of peptide bonds and reading mRNA, respectively. These catalytic centers are composed of the most evolutionary ancient components of the ribosome; all other ribosomal components accreted onto their surface as the ribosome and life evolved. The evolutionary process of the ribosome can be seen in the structures of extant species; multi-cellular eukaryotes have the largest ribosomes, within their structure is the ribosome of single-cellular eukaryotes, which contains the structure of the smallest ribosome belonging to prokaryotes. The projects database will consist of sequence, structure, and molecular interactions of ribosomal proteins which the researcher will then use to analyze how the ribosome evolved. The database will also serve as a foundation for observing differences in ribosome structures that could be exploited for the development of new antimicrobials.
This award, under the East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes program, supports summer research by a U.S. graduate student and is jointly funded by NSF and the Ministry of Science and Technology of Taiwan.
