The ribosome derives the energy to translocate and unwind mRNA from EF-G binding
Hossein Amiri, William J Van Patten, Gillian Rexroad, Varsha P Desai, Benjamen A Sterwerf, Laura Lancaster, Harry F Noller, Carlos Bustamante · 2025
Read The ribosome derives the energy to translocate and unwind mRNA from EF-G binding by Hossein Amiri, William J Van Patten, Gillian Rexroad, Varsha P Desai, Benjamen A Sterwerf, Laura Lancaster, Harry F Noller, Carlos Bustamante (2025) in the Tower of Babel, a free online library of public-domain works preserved in clean, searchable text. No sign-up. The full text is served as a plain-text file at a predictable URL, where text is present: https://antarctic-labs.com/tower-of-babel/pmc-12775393.txt.
Description
Hossein Amiri and seven co-authors present a 2025 study on how the ribosome moves along messenger RNA while building proteins. The ribosome is the cell's protein factory, and a helper protein called EF-G drives each step forward. Which steps truly need the energy from breaking down GTP, the helper's fuel, was long debated. The team watched single molecules with fine optical tools and glowing tags.
They tracked the helper binding to ribosomes while measuring both RNA movement and unwinding. Neither step needed the fuel to be broken down; each could happen on its own timing. Tight binding of the helper seemed to trigger both steps. Breaking the fuel mainly sped things up and freed the helper afterward. The work reshapes how scientists picture the energy budget of protein building.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Hossein Amiri, William J Van Patten, Gillian Rexroad, Varsha P Desai, Benjamen A Sterwerf, Laura Lancaster, Harry F Noller, Carlos Bustamante |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2025 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 55 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |