{"id":28258,"date":"2023-12-20T15:28:39","date_gmt":"2023-12-20T20:28:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/biology.mit.edu\/?page_id=28258"},"modified":"2023-12-21T15:04:40","modified_gmt":"2023-12-21T20:04:40","slug":"news-brief-davis-lab","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/biology.mit.edu\/news\/news-brief-davis-lab\/","title":{"rendered":"News Brief: Davis Lab"},"content":{"rendered":"
Newly developed model-based analysis reveals protein proofreading in ribosome biogenesis<\/h1>\n
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Research from the Davis Lab in the Department of Biology at MIT, in collaboration with the Ortega Group at McGill University, showcases the power of machine learning to solve biological puzzles<\/h3>\n
By Lillian Eden<\/h4>\n
One of the most critical complexes in cells is the ribosome, the large and elaborate machinery responsible for translating genetic code into proteins\u2013but how do cells make and assemble the ribosomes?<\/p>\n
Assembly of ribosomes, which are formed from a delicately interwoven mesh of proteins and RNA, requires the help of many proteins that are generally referred to as assembly factors. Assembly factors perform a range of functions, including catalyzing ribosomal RNA folding or promoting ribosomal protein binding. These factors are especially important in stressful conditions, such as cold temperatures, where ribosomal RNA can become kinetically trapped in misfolded states.<\/p>\n
Because of the complex multi-step nature of ribosome assembly and the sheer number of assembly factors involved, the role of many assembly factors has yet to be defined.<\/p>\n
Of the assembly factors involved in prokaryotic ribosome biogenesis, more than 20 are from a class of enzymes called methyltransferases that transfer a methyl group to ribosomal RNA. The contributions of these methyltransferases to ribosome assembly remain unclear.<\/p>\n