Sub-unit structure and specificity of methionyl-transfer-ribonucleic acid synthetase from Escherichia coli.

1. The purification of methionyl-transfer-RNA synthetase from Escherichia coli by a modified technique gives a 16% yield of a protein that appears homogeneous by the criteria of disc gel electrophoresis, ultracentrifugation and end-group analysis. 2. The molecular weight is 96000 and the protein consists of two sub-units of 48000, which appear to be identical. The amino acid composition and thiol content are reported. 3. Kinetic data are reported for analogues of methionine and for pure t-RNA(F) and t-RNA(M), which are respectively the methionine transfer RNA that can exist in the formylmethionyl form and the one that can exist only in the methionyl form. The enzyme binds and acylates both species of transfer RNA identically.