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Transfer RNA

The structure determined for this molecule is L-shaped with anticodon loop, i.e. the part that contains a specific triplet of nucleosides that codes for the particular amino acid for which this is a t-RNA, at one end. At the other end is the amino acid acceptor which recognizes the appropriate amino acid and is esterified in a reaction catalysed by the appropriate aminoacyl synthetase. 60-70% of the structure is double helical. In addition to the above sites for attachment, there is also a site for attachment of the activating enzyme (which binds amino acid to the t-RNA) and for attachment to the ribosome (where transcription occurs). The structure of the amino acyl synthetase is being studied and a suggested model for its interaction with t-RNA has been put forward.

Reference

a. Transfer RNA. Kim, S. H., Suddath, F. L., Quigley, G. J. and Rich, A., Science 185 (1974) 435; Robertus, J. D., Ladner, J. E., Finch, J. T., Rhodes, D., Brown, R. S., Clark, B. F. C. and Klug, A., Nature 250 (1974) 546; Suddath, F. L., Quigley, G. J., McPherson, A., Sneden, D., Kim, J. J., Kim, S. H. and Rich, A., Nature 248 (1974) 20.

b. Tyrosyl t-RNA synthetase. Irwin, M. J., Nyborg, J., Reid, B. R. and Blow, D. M., J. Mol. Biol . 105 (1976) 577.

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