The complete covalent structure of ribosomal protein S1 of Escherichia coli has been determined and predictions made of its secondary structure. Protein S1 (E. coli MRE 600) is a single-chain, acidic protein with 557 amino acid residues of the composition Asp43, Asn23, Thr25, Ser25, Glu60, Gln14, Pro10, Gly48, Ala48, Val67, Met6, Ile30, Leu45, Tyr6, Phe17, His8, Lys43, Arg30, Trp7, Cys2 and an MΓ of 61 159. The two -SH groups of S1 are located in the central region of the chain at positions 292 and 349, the latter being the reactive group whose modification results in the reported loss of the nucleic-acid-unfolding ability of S1. The central region also contains the majority of the tryptophan, histidine and methionine residues of S1 and is predicted to have a secondary structure dominated by β-sheets and turns. A direct proof for the location of the nucleic-acid-binding domain of S1 in the central region has recently been obtained [Subramanian et al. (1981) Eur. J. Biochem. 119, 245-249]. The N-terminal region of S1, which contains the ribosome-binding domain has a relatively high predicted α-helix content and no preponderance of basic amino acids. The facile trypsin-sensitive site in S1 is located at Arg-171, approximately at the border between the N-terminal and central regions. The acidic and basic amino acids of S1 (32.8% of all residues) are distributed throughout the chain, often in small clusters of between two and six residues. The amino acid sequence of S1 contains three 24-residue stretches with strong internal homology. Two of the stretches are located in the central. RNA-binding region, suggesting a possible role in the RNA-binding and helix-destabilizing functions of S1. A fragment of MΓ 104 from the central region of S1 gives an anomalously high apparent MΓ by dodecylsulfate gel electrophoresis, indicating a stable structural element therein and accounting for the apparent high MΓ of S1 as determined by gel electrophoresis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]