Hibernating ribosomes help bacteria survive

In the second of two high-profile articles published in recent weeks, Saint Louis University scientist Mee-Ngan F. Yap, Ph.D., in collaboration with the laboratories of 2009 Nobel laureate in chemistry Ada Yonath at the Weizmann Institute of Science and Alexey Amunts at Stockholm University, describe in Nature Communications new information about the structure of Staphylococcus aureus (or Staph) hibernating 100S ribosomes, uncovering secrets of how they turn off protein biosynthesis to conserve energy and survive under stressful conditions.