Stabilisation of some of the protein synthesis components in the thermophilic fungus, Humicola lanuginosa.

ABSTRACT

The thermal stabilities of tRNA from the thermophilic fungus, Humicola lanuginose were compared with that from the mesophilic yeast, Candida utilis, by measuring the increase in the optical density with temperature. tRNAs from both the species were stable in the presence of millimolar quantities of magnesium chloride upto 50°C, the optimum growth temperature of the fungus. Aminoacyl tRNA synthetases were maximally active at 40°C under the in vitro assay conditions. They were fractionated and one species of valine tRNA synthetase was purified to homogeneity. The purified enzyme was protected against inactivation to varying degrees when preincubated with the substrates valine, tRNA and ATP as well as spermine. Protein turnover studies showed that the rate of turnover was higher at higher temperatures. It was concluded from these results that the protein synthesizing machinery of this fungus has no intrinsic stability but it is stabilised by intracellular factors. Higher rate of protein turnover also plays a role for growth at higher temperature.