Recruitment of bifunctional regulator thermospermine to methylated ribosomes directs xylem fate.

Ko, Donghwi; Ruonala, Raili; Faille, Alexandre; Hellmann, Eva; Help, Hanna; Liu, Huili; Nielsen, Ronni; Haakonsson, Anders et al. · Science · 2026

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Polyamines are often associated with ribosomes and are thought to stabilize their integrity. In <i>Arabidopsis</i>, the polyamine thermospermine (tSpm) affects xylem cell fate. tSpm induces translation of SUPPRESSOR-OF-ACAULIS51 (SAC51) and SAC51-LIKEs (SACLs), which inhibit heterodimerization of the xylem development proteins LONESOME-HIGHWAY (LHW) and TARGET-OF-MONOPTEROS5. Here, we report a methyltransferase, OVERACHIEVER, that methylates the peptidyl transferase center of the 25<i>S</i> ribosomal RNA (rRNA). Residue m<sup>3</sup>U2952 promotes functional tSpm binding to a specific site connecting the P-site transfer RNA (tRNA) with rRNA residues in the peptidyl transferase center. This interaction enhances the translation of SACLs but inhibits that of LHW. Our study uncovers the dependency between a conserved rRNA base methylation and a polyamine in orchestrating cell fate decisions, highlighting a role for the ribosome chemical landscape in translational regulation.

Medical subject headings