Fig 5.

Sertraline inhibits translation in a Cryptococcus cell-free system. The cell-free translation system was prepared as described in Materials and Methods. (A) The translation of luciferase in both Cryptococcus and Saccharomyces cell extracts is dependent on the mRNA 5′ terminal cap, designated C, and on the 3′ terminal poly(A) tail, designated A. The cap and poly(A) synergistically stimulate RNA translation in both cell-free systems. (B and C) Water, the solvent DMSO, or sertraline in stock solution was added into reaction mixtures to reach the indicated concentrations. Luciferase protein synthesis by the cell-free translation system was measured based on the relative light units arising from the enzymatic activity of luciferase (B) or the level of [³⁵S]methionine incorporated into the synthesized luciferase polypeptide (C). Both measurements showed that sertraline inhibited translation in a dose-dependent manner.