Ohtsuka E, Nishikawa S, Fukumoto R, Uemura H, Tanaka T, Nakagawa E, Miyake T, Ikehara M
Eur J Biochem. 1980 Apr;105(3):481-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1432-1033.1980.tb04523.x.
An eicosanucleotide C--G--C--G--G--G--G--U--G--G--A--G--C--A--G--C--C--U--G--Gp corresponding to the bases 1--20 of the nascent sequence for the Escherichia coli tRNAfMet has been synthesized by the joining of the chemically synthesized oligonucleotides C--G--C--G, G--G--G--U--G--G and A--G--C--A--G--C--C--U--G--Gp using RNA ligase from T4-infected E. coli. The hexanucleotide and decanucleotide were phosphorylated with polynucleotide kinase and [gamma-32P]ATP prior to the joining reactions. The decanucleotide and eicosanucleotide were reconstituted respectively with the 3'-three-quarter molecule obtained by limited digestion with RNase T1 of the natural tRNAfMet from E. coli and the activity of the complex as a methionine acceptor was tested using purified methionyl-tRNA synthetase from E. coli. The amino acid acceptor activity of the reconstituted molecules was 11% and 84% with respect to that of the intact tRNAfMet.
