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Antibodies to the Triplet Codons AAA, AAC, and AUG: Reactions with Nucleic Acids¹

From the Department of Microbiology, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, New York 10032

Abstract

Antibodies specific for the trinucleotide codons AAA, AUG, and AAC were examined for their reactions with nucleic acids. Anti-AUG and anti-AAC precipitated denatured DNA. Anti-AAA did not, and moreover, the binding of a tritiated AAA derivative to anti-AAA was not inhibited by denatured DNA. Radioligand-binding studies showed that anti-AAA was highly specific for the triplet sequence, some cross-reactions occurring with di-A and tetra-A but little with A and poly(A). The anti-codons did not precipitate whole yeast RNA, but binding could be demonstrated with Escherichia coli ³H-rRNA. Anti-AAC and anti-AUG (but not anti-AAA) bound E. coli ¹⁴C-tRNA. Anti-AUG was found to inhibit protein synthesis in an in vitro system in which rabbit reticulocyte mRNA was being translated. Inhibition was abolished by absorption of the antibody with AUG-RSA. The results of these and previous experiments (reference 1) are interpreted to indicate that antibodies can recognize trinucleotide sequences but not with absolute specificity, and it is suggested that antibodies to longer nucleotide sequences might show specificity comparable to that shown by antibodies to polysaccharide and peptide sequences.

Footnotes

¹ This work, which was supported by Research Grant AI-06860 and Training Grant AI-00364 from the National Institutes of Health, is part of a dissertation submitted by R. D'Alisa in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Ph.D. degree in the Department of Microbiology, Columbia University.

² Current address: Department of Virology, Box 57, Rockefeller University, 66th Street and York Avenue, New York, New York 10021.