Researchers design first artificial ribosome

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago and Northwestern University have engineered a tethered ribosome that works nearly as well as the authentic cellular component, or organelle, that produces all the proteins and enzymes within the cell.

The engineered ribosome may enable the production of new drugs and next-generation biomaterials and lead to a better understanding of how ribosomes function. The human-made ribosome, called Ribo-T, may be able to be manipulated in the laboratory to do things natural ribosomes cannot do.

When the cell makes a protein, mRNA (messenger RNA) is copied from DNA. The ribosomes' two subunits, one large and one small, unite on mRNA to form the functional unit that assembles the protein in a process called translation. Once the protein molecule is complete, the ribosome subunits—both of which are themselves made up of RNA and protein—separate from each other.

In a new study in the journal Nature, the researchers describe the design and properties of Ribo-T, a ribosome with subunits that will not separate. Ribo-T may be able to be tuned to produce unique and functional polymers for exploring ribosome functions or producing designer therapeutics—and perhaps one day even non-biological polymers. No one has ever developed something of this nature.