Characterization of Ffh of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and its interaction with 4.5S RNA.

Signal recognition particle (SRP) mediates targeting of proteins to appropriate cellular compartments, which is an important process in all living organisms. In prokaryotes, SRP consists of Ffh, a protein, and 4.5S RNA that recognizes signal peptide emerging from ribosomes. The SRP (Ffh) of one the most successful intracellular pathogen, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, has been investigated with respect to biochemical properties. In the present study, Ffh of M. tuberculosis was overexpressed and was confirmed to be a GTPase using thin layer chromatography and malachite green assay. The GTP binding ability was confirmed by GTP overlay assay. The 4.5S RNA sequence of M. tuberculosis was synthesized by in vitro transcription assay. The interaction between Ffh and 4.5S RNA was confirmed by overlay assay and RNA gel shift assay. The results show that the biochemical properties of M. tuberculosis Ffh have been conserved, and this is the first report that shows the interaction of components of SRP in M. tuberculosis, namely Ffh protein and 4.5S RNA.