The regulation of translation is critical in almost every aspect of gene expression. Nonetheless, the ribosome is historically viewed as a passive player in this process. However, evidence is accumulating to suggest that variations in the ribosome can have an important influence on which mRNAs are translated. Scope for variation is provided via multiple avenues, including heterogeneity at the level of both ribosomal proteins and ribosomal RNAs and their covalent modifications. Together, these variations provide the potential for hundreds, if not thousands, of flavours of ribosome, each of which could have idiosyncratic preferences for the translation of certain messenger RNAs. Indeed, perturbations to this heterogeneity appear to affect specific subsets of transcripts and manifest as cell-type-specific diseases. This review provides a historical perspective of the ribosomal code hypothesis, before outlining the various sources of heterogeneity, their regulation and functional consequences for the cell.
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December 2018
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Dysfunctional cytoskeleton and neurodegeneration: novel pathways in Parkinson's disease? This image represents the degeneration of the neuronal tree during the aging process. In this issue Civiero et al. discuss the consequence of impaired cytoskeletal dynamics on neurite morphology and neuronal physiology in Parkinson's disease. For further details see pages 1653–1663.
Review Article|
November 12 2018
Ribosomal flavours: an acquired taste for specific mRNAs?
Christian Bates;
Christian Bates
1School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Rd., Manchester M13 9PT, U.K.
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Simon J. Hubbard;
Simon J. Hubbard
1School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Rd., Manchester M13 9PT, U.K.
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Mark P. Ashe
1School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Rd., Manchester M13 9PT, U.K.
Correspondence: Mark P. Ashe (mark.p.ashe@manchester.ac.uk)
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Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Received:
July 11 2018
Revision Received:
September 14 2018
Accepted:
September 17 2018
Online ISSN: 1470-8752
Print ISSN: 0300-5127
© 2018 The Author(s). Published by Portland Press Limited on behalf of the Biochemical Society
2018
Biochem Soc Trans (2018) 46 (6): 1529–1539.
Article history
Received:
July 11 2018
Revision Received:
September 14 2018
Accepted:
September 17 2018
Citation
Christian Bates, Simon J. Hubbard, Mark P. Ashe; Ribosomal flavours: an acquired taste for specific mRNAs?. Biochem Soc Trans 17 December 2018; 46 (6): 1529–1539. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/BST20180160
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