Key sites of interaction in the ribosome

Key sites of interaction in a ribosome in the elongation phase of translation. (a) A computer model of the three-dimensional structure of the ribosome including mRNA, tRNAs, and the nascent polypeptide chain as it emerges from the large ribosomal subunit. (b) A schematic model of the ribosome during) translation elongation. See text for details.

[(a) J. Frank, Cryo-electron microscopy as an investigative tool: the ribosome as an example, BioEssays 23, 2001, 725-732, Figure 2. © Reproduced with permission of John Wiley & Sons, Inc.]