l12

L12 is a designation used in several disciplines, including biology and technology, to label a specific protein, molecule, or model number. The most widely recognized reference in scientific literature is ribosomal protein L12, a component of the large ribosomal subunit that participates in protein synthesis.

In bacteria and archaea, ribosomal protein L12 (often referred to as L7/L12) forms a dimer that attaches to the L10 protein on the 50S subunit. L12 is a small acidic protein, typically around 120 amino acids in length, and it can exist in two forms: L12 and the acetylated L7 form. L7/L12 dimers play a key role in the L10-L12 stalk, which helps recruit and stabilize translation factors during GTP hydrolysis and peptide elongation. The bacterial gene commonly associated with L7/L12 is rplL, though nomenclature can vary by organism.

In eukaryotes, a homologous ribosomal protein named L12 is a constituent of the 60S large subunit. The eukaryotic L12 is encoded by the RPL12 gene and contributes to ribosome assembly and function, cooperating with other large-subunit proteins and ribosomal RNA to facilitate translation.

Beyond biology, L12 is also used as a general alphanumeric designation in non-biological contexts, appearing in various product names and model numbers. Because the meaning of L12 depends on the domain, precise interpretation should be guided by domain-specific documentation or context.