Kozak sequences regulate gene expression in Trypanosoma brucei - PubMed
6 hours ago
- #translation regulation
- #Trypanosoma brucei
- #Kozak sequence
- Kozak consensus sequences, crucial for translation initiation in eukaryotes, were not found in the overall mRNA population of Trypanosoma brucei and other kinetoplastids.
- In T. brucei, a subpopulation of constitutively expressed mRNAs encoding highly abundant proteins exhibited a Kozak motif with a strong bias toward a cytosine at position +5 (+5C).
- In vivo experiments defined 'weak' and 'strong' Kozak sequences in T. brucei, where 'strong' sequences required +5C and allowed translation initiation from non-AUG start codons like CUG.
- Due to polycistronic transcription and lack of transcriptional control in T. brucei, Kozak sequences are proposed to help regulate protein levels, offering a method to modulate protein abundance in transgenic trypanosomes.