Recent advances in ribosome profiling for deciphering translational regulation

Abstract

Messenger RNA (mRNA) translation is a central step of gene expression. Translational regulation plays essential roles in various biological processes. Ribosome profiling is a powerful technique to study genome-wide translational regulation at a single-codon resolution. Based on conventional ribosome profiling procedures, many new experimental methods have recently been developed to investigate the biology of mRNA translation from different aspects. These technical advances have significantly advanced our understanding of translational regulation at genomic scales from the following perspectives: (1) identification of translational initiation sites; (2) characterization of the dynamics of the complete translation cycle; (3) profiling of active ribosomes; (4) tissue-specific translational regulation; (5) translational regulation in subcellular locations; (6) detection of ribosome traffic jams; (7) plastid translatomes; and (8) ribosome heterogeneity and translational preference. Here, we summarize the key differences between these new techniques and the conventional ribosome profiling approach. We also review the computational methods designed to analyze ribosome profiling data.

Keywords: Ribosome profiling; Translational regulation; mRNA translation.