Hydrophobic interaction chromatography of incompletely methylated transfer RNA from Escherichia coli on octyl-sepharose.

Phenylalanine-specific transfer RNA from methionine-starved relaxed Escherichia coli K12 separates into two components when chromatographed on Octyl-Sepharose. The difference in elution between the two tRNAs has been shown to depend on the methyl group in the highly modified 2-methylthio-N-6-isopentenyladenosine. The first eluted tRNAPhe lacks this methyl group, while the last eluted tRNAPhe is fully methylated. Other differences in the modification patterns have no effect on the elution from Octyl-Sepharose. The elution pattern of tyrosine- and serine-specific tRNAs, also normally containing ms2i6A, is similar.