Translation initiation factor eIF4G1 preferentially binds yeast transcript leaders containing conserved oligo-uridine motifs

Translational control of gene expression plays essential roles in cellular stress responses and organismal development by enabling rapid, selective, and localized control of protein production. Translational regulation depends on context-dependent differences in the protein output of mRNAs, but the key mRNA features that distinguish efficiently translated mRNAs are largely unknown. Here we comprehensively determined the RNA-binding preferences of the initiation factor eIF4G to assess whether this core translation initiation factor has intrinsic sequence preferences that contribute to preferential translation of specific mRNAs.