Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Aarhus University, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
Biochemistry. 2012 Apr 3;51(13):2642-51. doi: 10.1021/bi300077s. Epub 2012 Mar 19.
During translation, the nucleic acid language employed by genes is translated into the amino acid language used by proteins. The translator is the ribosome, while the dictionary employed is known as the genetic code. The genetic information is presented to the ribosome in the form of a mRNA, and tRNAs connect the two languages. Translation takes place in three steps: initiation, elongation, and termination. After a protein has been synthesized, the components of the translation apparatus are recycled. During each phase of translation, the ribosome collaborates with specific translation factors, which secure a proper balance between speed and fidelity. Notably, initiation, termination, and ribosomal recycling occur only once per protein produced during normal translation, while the elongation step is repeated a large number of times, corresponding to the number of amino acids constituting the protein of interest. In bacteria, elongation factor Tu plays a central role during the selection of the correct amino acids throughout the elongation phase of translation. Elongation factor Tu is the main subject of this review.
在翻译过程中，基因所使用的核酸语言被翻译成蛋白质所使用的氨基酸语言。核糖体是翻译者，而所使用的字典则被称为遗传密码。遗传信息以 mRNA 的形式呈现给核糖体，而 tRNA 则连接这两种语言。翻译分为三个步骤：起始、延伸和终止。蛋白质合成后，翻译装置的组件被回收利用。在翻译的每个阶段，核糖体都与特定的翻译因子合作，在速度和保真度之间取得适当的平衡。值得注意的是，在正常翻译过程中，每个蛋白质只进行一次起始、终止和核糖体回收，而延伸步骤则会重复多次，对应于感兴趣的蛋白质所包含的氨基酸数量。在细菌中，延伸因子 Tu 在翻译延伸阶段选择正确氨基酸的过程中起着核心作用。延伸因子 Tu 是本综述的主要研究对象。
