Date : 21/04/2010

Laboratory

CGM CNRS FRE3144
1 Av. de la Terrasse, Bât. 26
91198 Gif-sur-Yvette
Director : Frédéric Boccard

PhD Supervisor

Dominique Fourmy
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Subjects / Tools-Methodologies

1 : translation/fluorescence microscopy, single molecule imaging
2 : protein syntheis initiation/fluorescence microscopy, single molecule imaging
3 : molecular motor/fluorescence microscopy, single molecule imaging

Summary of lab's interests

We investigate the role of RNA in cellular functions. RNA molecules are key informational, structural, catalytic, and gene-regulatory molecules. The ribosome is an RNA-based machine that converts genetic information into proteins. Translation requires intricate communication between multiple components to achieve speed, accuracy, and regulation. A subset of translation factors is highly conserved in prokaryotes and eukaryotes, suggesting similarity in the basal mechanism of translation. We combine biochemical tools and single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy to investigate the dynamics of translation and in particular how the ribosome moves along the mRNA.

Summary of project

Initiation of translation of eukaryotic mRNA is a complex process consisting of a number of successive distinct steps. Among these steps, the most enigmatic one is the ATP-dependent unidirectional movement of the 43S ribosomal complex along the mRNA chain at the region preceding the initiation codon, i.e., along the 5’-UTR. The existence of this ‘’scanning’’ mechanism was proposed more than two decades ago and is, at this time, based on the principles of molecular Brownian ratchet machines. We will test this hypothesis in collaboration with a group from Institute of Optics using single molecule fluorescence spectroscopy.