Testing the functional compatibility of translation components between T. thermophilus and E. coli. (A) The exchange of key translation components (IFs, Tu/Ts, G, RRF and ribosome) between T. thermophilus (filled circles) and E. coli (open circles) in the reconstituted T. thermophilus system translating stGFP mRNA at 37°C. The relevant exchange experiments including the controls are boxed for clarity. (B) The exchange of EF-Tu and EF-Ts (Tu and Ts) between T. thermophilus (filled circles) and E. coli (open circles) in the reconstituted E. coli system translating stGFP mRNA at 37°C. The missing components are indicated by the minus symbol (−). The relative synthesis yields (%) are based on the fluorescence of the reactions compared with that of the original reconstituted systems (set as 100; lane 11 in A and lane 9 in B). All data are based on at least two independent experiments.