In vitro template activity of 0.3 mRNA from wild type and initiation mutants of bacteriophage T7.

Bacteriophage T7 0.3 mRNA synthesised and processed in vitro has been purified starting from the DNA of T7+ as well as from that of two initiation mutants of T7 (CR17 with a U----C transition in the initiation codon and CR35b whose potential Shine and Dalgarno (S-D) interaction is interrupted by a G----A transition). These mRNAs were used as templates to direct the binding of fMet-tRNA and the synthesis of 0.3 protein in both E. coli and wheat germ cell-free systems. The initiation codon mutant displayed approximately 50% inhibition of fMet-tRNA binding and 0.3 protein synthesis in both systems. The S-D sequence mutant, on the other hand, was found to be less affected than the initiation triplet mutant (20%-40% inhibition) in both fMet-tRNA binding and template activity in the E. coli system. In the wheat germ system, which does not make use of the S-D interaction, however, this mutant displayed normal template activity suggesting that the inhibition obtained in the E. coli system, albeit slight, is due to the impairment of the S-D interaction and not to an alteration of the mRNA secondary or tertiary structure caused by the base substitution.