eFinder

eFinder

Home › Article

Second ribosome binding site helps explain how tetracyclines work

Phys · · 737 words · By Isabella Backman

Researchers at the Yale School of Medicine used cryo-electron microscopy to discover that tetracycline antibiotics bind to a second site on the bacterial ribosome called the nascent peptide exit tunnel. This finding explains the high potency of doxycycline and the narrow-spectrum nature of sarecycline, providing a potential roadmap for developing more effective and microbiome-friendly antibiotics.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://phys.org/news/2026-05-ribosome-site-tetracyclines.html

analyticsAnalysis

0%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 100%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

15 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

check_circle Corroborated 5
schedule Pending 5
info Single Source 2
help Insufficient Evidence 2
verified Verified By Reference 1
check_circle
“researchers in the laboratory of Christopher Bunick, MD, Ph.D., associate professor of dermatology at Yale School of Medicine (YSM), captured a never-before-seen look into how different kinds of tetracyclines bind to and kill bacteria.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources (Newswise, Dermatology Times, and Yale Scientific Magazine) confirm that Christopher Bunick's lab at Yale School of Medicine conducted this research on how tetracyclines bind to bacteria.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Yale School of Medicine.How tetracyclines bind to bacteria. Scientists knew that tetracyclines work by binding to the bacterial ribosome, a molecule that synthesizes proteins.
https://www.newswise.com/articles/how-tetracyclines-work-new…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Study investigator and Dermatology Times editor-in-chief Christopher G. Bunick, MD, PhD, said the project was designed to address several clinically relevant questions surrounding tetracycline use in …
https://www.dermatologytimes.com/view/study-finds-tetracycli…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Christopher Bunick, associate professor of dermatology at the Yale School of Medicine, noticed the importance of this novel antibiotic and decided to look into its molecular mechanism.
https://www.yalescientific.org/2023/11/its-in-our-bones/
check_circle
“A new Nature Communications study, published May 19, redefines scientists' understanding of how a popular class of antibiotics work.”
CORROBORATED
The study's publication in Nature Communications is confirmed by both Dermatology Times and another research-related web result. While the specific date 'May 19' is not explicitly in the snippets, the publication in that journal is corroborated.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Tetracycline antibiotics are protein synthesis inhibitors.[22] They inhibit the initiation of translation in variety of ways by binding to the 30S ribosomal subunit, which is made up of 16S rRNA and 2…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetracycline_antibiotics
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Published in Nature Communications, the study used high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to examine how these antibiotics interact with bacterial ribosomes from both Escherichia coli and …
https://www.dermatologytimes.com/view/study-finds-tetracycli…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The study, reported in Nature Communications, raises mechanistic considerations for antibiotic therapy and the design of new molecules that can better discriminate between pathogen and host.
https://phys.org/news/2025-05-tetracycline-antibiotics-impai…
verified
“Scientists knew that tetracyclines work by binding to the bacterial ribosome, a molecule that synthesizes proteins.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia explicitly states that tetracycline antibiotics are protein synthesis inhibitors that bind to the 30S ribosomal subunit.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Tetracyclines remain especially useful in the management of infections by certain obligately intracellular bacterial pathogens such as Chlamydia, Mycoplasma, and Rickettsia. They are also of value in …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetracycline
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Apr 14, 2023 · Tetracyclines are a class of antibiotics that may be used to treat infections caused by susceptible microorganisms such as gram positive and gram negative bacteria, chlamydiae, mycoplas…
https://www.drugs.com/drug-class/tetracyclines.html
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Overview What are tetracyclines? Tetracyclines are a type of antibiotic that work on two major kinds of bacteria. Healthcare providers prescribe them to manage and treat various bacterial infections. …
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/25214-tetra…
check_circle
“Specifically, they bind to a region known as the mRNA decoding center where they block protein production, preventing bacteria from growing.”
CORROBORATED
Both Newswise and a clinical microbiology source confirm that tetracyclines bind to the mRNA decoding center (or A-site) to block protein production.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — They inhibit protein synthesis by binding reversibly to the bacterial 30S ribosomal subunit and preventing the aminoacyl tRNA from binding to the A site of the ribosome.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetracycline_antibiotics
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Scientists knew that tetracyclines work by binding to the bacterial ribosome, a molecule that synthesizes proteins. Specifically, they bind to a region known as the mRNA decoding center where they blo…
https://www.newswise.com/articles/how-tetracyclines-work-new…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Tetracyclines primarily target the 30S ribosomal subunit, more specifically, they bind to the ‘access site” (A-site) of the 16S subunit. The binding occurs near the mRNA decoding center, which is wher…
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tetracyclines-clinical-microb…
check_circle
“scientists used a technique called single particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to visualize how common kinds of tetracyclines—including doxycycline, sarecycline, and minocycline—bound with the ribosomes of common gut microbe Escherichia coli and acne-causing Cutibacterium acnes.”
CORROBORATED
Newswise and Dermatology Times both confirm the use of single particle cryo-EM to study doxycycline, sarecycline, and minocycline in E. coli and C. acnes.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Published in Nature Communications, the study used high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to examine how these antibiotics interact with bacterial ribosomes from both Escherichia coli and …
https://www.dermatologytimes.com/view/study-finds-tetracycli…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In the new study, scientists used a technique called single particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to visualize how common kinds of tetracyclines—including doxycycline, sarecycline, and minocycli…
https://www.newswise.com/articles/how-tetracyclines-work-new…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — This article reviews the optimal use of doxycycline and minocycline to treat a variety of infections and when minocycline is preferred instead of doxycycline.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/319161368_Similarit…
check_circle
“The researchers discovered that in addition to the mRNA decoding center, all of the tetracyclines also bound to a second site on the bacterial ribosome called the nascent peptide exit tunnel (NPET), where newly synthesized proteins leave the ribosome.”
CORROBORATED
The discovery of a second binding site at the nascent peptide exit tunnel (NPET) is reported by both Newswise and the 'Study Finds Tetracyclines Target Bacterial Ribosomes at 2 Sites' source.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — How tetracyclines bind to bacteria. Scientists knew that tetracyclines work by binding to the bacterial ribosome, a molecule that synthesizes proteins.
https://www.newswise.com/articles/how-tetracyclines-work-new…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Researchers from Yale University and collaborating institutions reported that doxycycline, minocycline, and sarecycline bind not only to the well-known 30S ribosomal decoding center, but also to a sec…
https://www.dermatologytimes.com/view/study-finds-tetracycli…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The canonical tetracycline binding site is marked as CTBS, the decoding center as DC, the peptidyl transferase center as PTC, and the nascent peptide exit tunnel as NPET (blue). The 30S ribosomal subu…
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10967556/
info
“doxycycline can stick to itself and form pairs, or dimers, in the NPET of both E. coli and C. acnes.”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the general study is corroborated, the specific detail about doxycycline forming dimers in the NPET is not explicitly detailed in the provided evidence snippets from other sources; it appears to be a specific finding of the study mentioned in the original claim.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Ribbon diagram of a dimer of Escherichia coli galactose-1-phosphate uridylyltransferase in complex with UDP-galactose. Potassium, zinc, and iron ions are visible as purple, gray, and bronze-colored sp…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protein_dimer
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Doxycycline is a tetracycline antibiotic used to treat a wide variety of bacterial infections.Clinical Trials. Pharmacoeconomics. Manufacturers Packagers Dosage Forms Prices Patents. Properties.
https://go.drugbank.com/drugs/DB00254
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Quora is a place to gain and share knowledge. It's a platform to ask questions and connect with people who contribute unique insights and quality answers. This empowers people to learn from each other…
https://www.quora.com/
info
“Every year, there are around 11 million prescriptions for doxycycline”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided evidence from DrugBank, Mayo Clinic, and NHS describes the use and side effects of doxycycline, but none of the sources provide the specific statistic of 11 million prescriptions annually.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Doxycycline is a tetracycline antibiotic used to treat a wide variety of bacterial infections.
https://go.drugbank.com/drugs/DB00254
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Doxycycline capsules, delayed-release capsules, delayed-release tablets, and tablets and Acticlate® Cap capsules are also used to prevent malaria and treat anthrax infection after possible exposure an…
https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/doxycycline-ora…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — NHS information about the medicine doxycycline, including what it's used for, who can take it, how to take it and side effects.
https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/doxycycline/
help
“Sarecycline received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treating moderate to severe acne in 2018.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding the FDA approval date or indication for sarecycline.
help
“the drug [sarecycline] is narrow-spectrum—it targets C. acnes while preserving beneficial gut bacteria.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding the spectrum of sarecycline or its effect on gut bacteria.
schedule
“Biologists classify bacteria as gram-positive or gram-negative based on key structural differences.”
PENDING
schedule
“C. acnes, for example, are gram-positive bacteria, and E. coli are gram-negative.”
PENDING
schedule
“In gram-negative E. coli, NPETs offered less space for sarecycline to bind, as it has a bulkier molecular structure than other tetracyclines.”
PENDING
schedule
“This forced the drug to flip its position 180 degrees in order to fit into the binding pocket.”
PENDING
schedule
“Swapnil C. Devarkar et al, Dual site targeting of the bacterial 70S ribosome by tetracyclines, Nature Communications (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-026-72788-9”
PENDING
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.