Action of streptothricin F on ribosomal functions.

The effect of streptothricin F on elongation factor-dependent and on elongation factor-free translation systems was studied. Streptothricin F inhibits factor-dependent as well as factor-free polypeptide synthesis. The results suggest that streptothricin F inhibits polypeptide synthesis via interaction with the ribosome. In partial reactions streptothricin F impairs EF-G-dependent translocation and to a lesser extent EF-Tu-dependent binding of aa-RNA to the ribosome, while it does not affect peptide bond formation significantly.