The essential and universal N6-threonylcarbamoyladenosine (t6A) modification at position 37 of ANN-decoding tRNAs plays a pivotal role in translational fidelity through enhancement of the cognate codon recognition and stabilization of the codon–anticodon interaction. In Escherichia coli, the YgjD (TsaD), YeaZ (TsaB), YjeE (TsaE) and YrdC (TsaC) proteins are necessary and sufficient for the in vitro biosynthesis of t6A, using tRNA, ATP, L-threonine and bicarbonate as substrates. YrdC synthesizes the short-lived L-threonylcarbamoyladenylate (TCA), and YgjD, YeaZ and YjeE cooperate to transfer the L-threonylcarbamoyl-moiety from TCA onto adenosine at position 37 of substrate tRNA. We determined the crystal structure of the heterodimer YgjD–YeaZ at 2.3 Å, revealing the presence of an unexpected molecule of ADP bound at an atypical site situated at the YgjD–YeaZ interface. We further showed that the ATPase activity of YjeE is strongly activated by the YgjD–YeaZ heterodimer. We established by binding experiments and SAXS data analysis that YgjD–YeaZ and YjeE form a compact ternary complex only in presence of ATP. The formation of the ternary YgjD–YeaZ–YjeE complex is required for the in vitro biosynthesis of t6A but not its ATPase activity.

N6-threonylcarbamoyladenosine (t6A) is a modified nucleotide found in all transfer RNAs (tRNAs) decoding codons starting with adenosine. Its role is to facilitate codon–anticodon pairing and to prevent frameshifting during protein synthesis. Genetic studies demonstrated that two universal proteins, Kae1/YgjD and Sua5/YrdC, are necessary for t6A synthesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Escherichia coli. In Archaea and Eukarya, Kae1 is part of a conserved protein complex named kinase, endopeptidase and other proteins of small size (KEOPS), together with three proteins that have no bacterial homologues. Here, we reconstituted for the first time an in vitro system for t6A modification in Archaea and Eukarya, using purified KEOPS and Sua5. We demonstrated binding of tRNAs to archaeal KEOPS and detected two distinct adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-dependent steps occurring in the course of the synthesis. Our data, together with recent reconstitution of an in vitro bacterial system, indicated that t6A cannot be catalysed by Sua5/YrdC and Kae1/YgjD alone but requires accessory proteins that are not universal. Remarkably, we observed interdomain complementation when bacterial, archaeal and eukaryotic proteins were combined in vitro, suggesting a conserved catalytic mechanism for the biosynthesis of t6A in nature. These findings shed light on the reaction mechanism of t6A synthesis and evolution of molecular systems that promote translation fidelity in present-day cells.

N6-threonylcarbamoyladenosine (t6A) is a universal tRNA modification essential for normal cell growth and accurate translation. In Archaea and Eukarya, the universal protein Sua5 and the conserved KEOPS/EKC complex together catalyze t6A biosynthesis. The KEOPS/EKC complex is composed of Kae1, a universal metalloprotein belonging to the ASHKA superfamily of ATPases; Bud32, an atypical protein kinase and two small proteins, Cgi121 and Pcc1. In this study, we investigated the requirement and functional role of KEOPS/EKC subunits for biosynthesis of t6A. We demonstrated that Pcc1, Kae1 and Bud32 form a minimal functional unit, whereas Cgi121 acts as an allosteric regulator. We confirmed that Pcc1 promotes dimerization of the KEOPS/EKC complex and uncovered that together with Kae1, it forms the tRNA binding core of the complex. Kae1 binds l-threonyl-carbamoyl-AMP intermediate in a metal-dependent fashion and transfers the l-threonyl-carbamoyl moiety to substrate tRNA. Surprisingly, we found that Bud32 is regulated by Kae1 and does not function as a protein kinase but as a P-loop ATPase possibly involved in tRNA dissociation. Overall, our data support a mechanistic model in which the final step in the biosynthesis of t6A relies on a strictly catalytic component, Kae1, and three partner proteins necessary for dimerization, tRNA binding and regulation.

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