RNA-protein complexes identified by crosslinking of polysomes.

The bifunctional cleavable reagent diepoxybutane was used to investigate the crosslinking of proteins to the 16S and 23S RNA in Escherichia coli ribosomes. The crosslinking patterns from polysomes, accumulated in the absence and presence of oxytetracycline, as well as reassociated 70S ribosomes were compared. The 30S proteins: S3, S4, S5, S7, S8, S9, S12, S13, S14 and S18 were recovered crosslinked to the 16S RNA and the 50S: proteins L1, L2, L4, L13, L14-L21, L15, L16, L17, L18-L23, L19-22-24, L27 and L28 were recovered crosslinked to the 23S RNA, in all three associated states. Proteins crosslinked to the RNA of the heterologous subunit and therefore considered to be at or near the ribosomal subunit interface were, for all three states, proteins S1, S4, S6, S9, S12, S13, S14 and S18 from the small subunit and proteins L16, L17, L20 and L27 from the large subunit. Finally, the recovery of intrasubunit crosslinks was measured for the isolated subunits. Additional crosslinked complexes were observed between 16S RNA and S1, S2 as well as S6 from the 30S subunit; and between 23S RNA and L10, L11, L7/12 from the 50S subunit.