Structural basis for start codon selection by eIF5-mimic proteins.

Authors

Ximena Zottig, Chun-Ying Huang, Zahra Seraj, Nikolaus Grigorieff, Andrei A Korostelev

Published in

Science advances. Volume 12. Issue 43. Pages eaeg5840. Oct 23, 2026. Epub Oct 23, 2026.

Abstract

Start codon selection extensively regulates the cellular proteome and is implicated in cancer and other diseases. The eIF5-mimic proteins (5MPs: 5MP1/BZW2 and 5MP2/BZW2) restrict non-AUG start codon usage and thereby reprogram proteoform expression from mRNAs with alternative start sites, such as the oncogenic c-Myc. Here, using in extracto cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) and biochemical assays, we report how 5MP represses translation dependent on the sequence context at start codons. Cryo-EM structures of 48S preinitiation complexes (PICs) reveal 5MP1 bound at the A site of the small ribosomal subunit. 5MPs act as initiation factors that stabilize an open PIC conformation, promoting mRNA scanning and inhibiting initiation at suboptimal start codons. We propose to designate 5MP as eIF1S (eukaryotic initiation factor 1 scanning). These findings reveal the structural basis for proteome modulation by 5MPs and may help correct dysregulated translation in disease.

PMID:
42912995
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 24 Oct 2026.

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