Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Journal of Bacteriology logoLink to Journal of Bacteriology
. 1972 Aug;111(2):474–480. doi: 10.1128/jb.111.2.474-480.1972

Similarity in the Size and Number of Ribosomal Proteins from Different Prokaryotes

Tung-Tien Sun 1, Thomas A Bickle 1, Robert R Traut 1
PMCID: PMC251307  PMID: 4626500

Abstract

The ribosomal proteins from nine species of prokaryotes have been compared by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. The stained gels were scanned spectrophotometrically, the weight and number average molecular weights were calculated, and the detailed distribution of the proteins as a function of molecular weight was determined. By all of these criteria, the ribosomal proteins from all the species closely resembled each other, despite differences in the pattern of protein bands by conventional disc-gel electrophoresis. Therefore, it is suggested that the structural requirements for the assembly of ribosomal subunits have imposed limitations on the evolution of the ribosomal proteins and that their size has been highly conserved.

Full text

PDF
474

Images in this article

476Image
on p.476

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Attardi G., Amaldi F. Structure and synthesis of ribosomal RNA. Annu Rev Biochem. 1970;39:183–226. doi: 10.1146/annurev.bi.39.070170.001151. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. BAYLEY S. T., KUSHNER D. J. THE RIBOSOMES OF THE EXTREMELY HALOPHILIC BACTERIUM, HALOBACTERIUM CUTIRUBRUM. J Mol Biol. 1964 Sep;9:654–669. doi: 10.1016/s0022-2836(64)80173-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. BELOZERSKY A. N., SPIRIN A. S. A correlation between the compositions of deoxyribonucleic and ribonucleic acids. Nature. 1958 Jul 12;182(4628):111–112. doi: 10.1038/182111a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Bennett J., Scott K. J. Quantitative staining of fraction I protein in polyacrylamide gels using Coomassie brillant blue. Anal Biochem. 1971 Sep;43(1):173–182. doi: 10.1016/0003-2697(71)90122-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Bickle T. A., Traut R. R. Differences in size and number of 80 S and 70 S ribosomal proteins by dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis. J Biol Chem. 1971 Nov 25;246(22):6828–6834. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Dzionara M., Kaltschmidt E., Wittmann H. G. Ribosomal proteins. 8. Molecular weights of isolated ribosomal proteins of Escherichia coli. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1970 Dec;67(4):1909–1913. doi: 10.1073/pnas.67.4.1909. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. HESS E. L., HORN R. DESTRUCTION BY RNASE OF 30 S AND 50 S RIBOSOMES FROM STREPTOCOCCUS PYOGENES. J Mol Biol. 1964 Dec;10:541–543. doi: 10.1016/s0022-2836(64)80074-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Hill L. R. An index to deoxyribonucleic acid base compositions of bacterial species. J Gen Microbiol. 1966 Sep;44(3):419–437. doi: 10.1099/00221287-44-3-419. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Kaltschmidt E., Wittmann H. G. Ribosomal proteins. XII. Number of proteins in small and large ribosomal subunits of Escherichia coli as determined by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1970 Nov;67(3):1276–1282. doi: 10.1073/pnas.67.3.1276. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. King H. W., Gould H. J., Shearman J. J. Molecular weight distribution of proteins in rabbit reticulocyte ribosomal subunits. J Mol Biol. 1971 Oct 14;61(1):143–156. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(71)90212-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Kurland C. G., Voynow P., Hardy S. J., Randall L., Lutter L. Physical and functional heterogeneity of E. coli ribosomes. Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol. 1969;34:17–24. doi: 10.1101/sqb.1969.034.01.006. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. LEBOY P. S., COX E. C., FLAKS J. G. THE CHROMOSOMAL SITE SPECIFYING A RIBOSOMAL PROTEIN IN ESCHERICHIA COLI. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1964 Dec;52:1367–1374. doi: 10.1073/pnas.52.6.1367. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Loening U. E. Molecular weights of ribosomal RNA in relation to evolution. J Mol Biol. 1968 Dec;38(3):355–365. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(68)90391-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Mora G., Donner D., Thammana P., Lutter L., Kurland C. G., Craven G. R. Purification and characterization of 50S ribosomal proteins of Escherichia coli. Mol Gen Genet. 1971;112(3):229–242. doi: 10.1007/BF00269176. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Nomura M., Mizushima S., Ozaki M., Traub P., Lowry C. V. Structure and function of ribosomes and their molecular components. Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol. 1969;34:49–61. doi: 10.1101/sqb.1969.034.01.009. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Nomura M., Traub P., Bechmann H. Hybrid 30S ribosomal particles reconstituted from components of different bacterial origins. Nature. 1968 Aug 24;219(5156):793–799. doi: 10.1038/219793b0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Otaka E., Itoh T., Osawa S. Ribosomal proteins of bacterial cells: strain- and species-specificity. J Mol Biol. 1968 Apr 14;33(1):93–107. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(68)90283-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Sypherd P. S., O'Neil D. M., Taylor M. M. The chemical and genetic structure of bacterial ribosomes. Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol. 1969;34:77–84. doi: 10.1101/sqb.1969.034.01.012. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. TAYLOR M. M., STORCK R. UNIQUENESS OF BACTERIAL RIBOSOMES. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1964 Oct;52:958–965. doi: 10.1073/pnas.52.4.958. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Taylor M. M., Glasgow J. E., Storck R. Sedimentation coefficients of RNA from 70S and 80S ribosomes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1967 Jan;57(1):164–169. doi: 10.1073/pnas.57.1.164. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Van Duin J., Kurland C. G. Functional heterogeneity of the 30S ribosomal subunit of E. coli. Mol Gen Genet. 1970;109(2):169–176. doi: 10.1007/BF00269653. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Warner J. R. The assembly of ribosomes in yeast. J Biol Chem. 1971 Jan 25;246(2):447–454. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Weber K., Osborn M. The reliability of molecular weight determinations by dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. J Biol Chem. 1969 Aug 25;244(16):4406–4412. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Bacteriology are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES