Cryo EM studies of the C. elegans ribosome to illuminate structure-function relations of ribosome heterogeneity

Recently, ribosome heterogeneity has emerged as a valid idea with many scientific groups presenting evidence corroborating compositional diversity of the ribosome. These differences can arise in many ways: ribosomal protein content, preferential utilization of paralogues, sequence variation of ribosomal RNA, post-translational modifications of RP and rRNA have all been documented. Although the effects of ribosome heterogeneity still mostly remain a mystery, emerging studies indicate that the variations in ribosome composition may underlie several vital biological functions such as translational control or environmental responses.

We study how cells exploit this ribosome heterogeneity to regulate translation during development in complex multicellular organisms and how ribosome composition can differ depending on the developmental stage of the cell. To answer these questions, we use an innovative combination of biochemistry and cryo Electron Microscopy for structural characterization of ribosomal complexes taken at different developmental stages and study their phenotypic expression and function in the nematode Caernorhabditis elegans.