Physical characterization of a ribosomal nucleoprotein complex.

The complex between ribosomal protein L24 and its RNA binding site (that region of the 23S RNA which the protein protects from ribonuclease digestion) has been studied by various physicochemical methods. The RNA is composed of two fragments of about 160 and 140 nucleotides which interact with each other to form the L24 binding site. Circular dichroism spectroscopy suggests that the two interacting fragments have a unique region of secondary structure which is not present in either of the two components alone; hence there are important structural interactions between regions of the RNA which are separated in the primary sequence. Addition of the L24 protein to the RNA site promotes a structural change associated with base unstacking, but with little or no change in the hydrogen-bonded base pairing. Heat activation is not required for complex formation. Thermal denaturation studies reveal a broad featureless transition and the amount of hypochromic change indicates that the RNA site contains less secondary structure than other RNAs such as tRNA and total rRNA. Temperature-jump relaxation measurements on the mechanism of unfolding of the RNA show a concerted melting of the entire secondary and tertiary structure, which is altered upon addition of the protein. A structrual basis for this RNA-protein complex is discussed.