Project description:N-terminal acetylation (NTA) is one of the most abundant protein modifications in eukaryotes and is catalysed in humans by seven N-acetyltransferases. In this study, we investigated the Arabidopsis thaliana NatB catalytic (NAA20) and auxiliary subunit (NAA25) and their influence on protein N-terminal acetylation using the SILProNAQ approach
Project description:Search for genes differently expressed when we inhibit NatB N-terminal acetyltransferase. We compare gene expression after inhibiting hNAT5 expression in Hela cells with specific siRNAs expressed with adenoviruses. Keywords: gene expression comparison
Project description:N-terminal acetylation (NTA) is one of the most abundant protein modifications in eukaryotes and is catalyzed in humans by seven Nα-acetyltransferases (NatA-F and NatH). Remarkably, the characterization of the plant Nat machinery and its biological relevance is still in its infancy, although NTA has gained recognition as key regulator of crucial processes like protein turnover, protein-protein interaction and protein targeting. In this study we combined in vitro assays, reverse genetics, quantitative N-terminomics, transcriptomics and physiological assays to characterize the Arabidopsis NatB complex. We show that the plant NatB catalytic (NAA20) and auxiliary subunit (NAA25) form a stable heterodimeric complex that accepts canonical NatB-type substrates in vitro. In planta, NatB complex formation was essential for enzymatic activity. Depletion of NatB subunits to 30% of wild-type level in three Arabidopsis T-DNA insertion mutants (naa20-1, naa20-2, naa25-1) decreased growth to 50% of wild-type level. A complementation approach revealed functional conservation between plant and human catalytic NatB subunits, while yeast NAA20 failed to complement naa20-1. Quantitative N-terminomics of approximately 2000 peptides identified 29 bona fide substrates of the plant NatB. In vivo, NatB preferentially acetylated N-termini starting with the initiator methionine followed by acidic amino acids and contributed 20% of the acetylation marks in the detected plant proteome. The global transcriptome and proteome analyses of NatB-depleted mutants suggested a function of NatB in multiple stress responses. In agreement, we revealed the specific impact of NatB on the resistance of plants to osmotic or high-salt stress. Remarkably, depletion of NatA did not affect these resistances.
Project description:In Arabidopsis thaliana the evolutionary conserved N-terminal acetyltransferase (Nat) complexes NatA and NatB co-translationally acetylate 60% of the proteome. Both have recently been implicated in the regulation of plant stress responses. While NatA mediates drought tolerance, NatB is required for pathogen resistance and the adaptation to high salinity and high osmolarity. Salt and osmotic stress impair protein folding and result in the accumulation of misfolded proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). The ER-membrane resident E3 ubiquitin ligase DOA10 targets misfolded proteins for degradation during ER stress and is conserved among eukaryotes. In yeast, DOA10 recognizes conditional degradation signals (Ac/N-degrons) created by NatA and NatB. Assuming that this mechanism is preserved in plants, the lack of Ac/N-degrons required for efficient removal of misfolded proteins might explain the sensitivity of NatB mutants to protein harming conditions. In this study, we investigate the response of NatB mutants to dithiothreitol (DTT) and tunicamycin (TM) induced ER stress. We report that NatB mutants are hypersensitive to DTT but not TM, suggesting that the DTT hypersensitivity is caused by an over-reduction of the cytosol rather than an accumulation of unfolded proteins in the ER. In line with this hypothesis, the cytosol of NatB depleted plants is constitutively over-reduced and a global transcriptome analysis reveals that their reductive stress response is permanently activated. Moreover, we demonstrate that doa10 mutants are susceptible to neither DTT nor TM, ruling out a substantial role of DOA10 in ER-associated protein degradation (ERAD) in plants. Contrary to previous findings in yeast, our data indicates that N-terminal acetylation (NTA) does not inhibit ER targeting of a substantial amount of proteins in plants. In summary, we provide further evidence that NatB-mediated imprinting of the proteome is vital for the response to protein-harming stress and rule out DOA10 as the sole recognin for substrates in the plant ERAD pathway.
Project description:Determing the substrate specificity and function of NatB using knockout with rescue and knockdown in yeast and human cells respectively.
Project description:Human caseinolytic protease P (hClpP) is important for degradation of misfolded proteins in the mitochondrial unfolded protein response. We here introduce tailored hClpP inhibitors that utilize a steric discrimination in their core naphthofuran scaffold to selectively address the human enzyme. This novel inhibitor generation exhibited superior activity compared to previously introduced beta-lactones, optimized for bacterial ClpP. Further insights into the bioactivity and binding to cellular targets were obtained via chemical proteomics as well as proliferation- and migration studies in cancer cells.
Project description:Endoplasmic reticulum-associated degradation (ERAD) is a critical protein quality control mechanism that also regulates lipid metabolism and calcium homeostasis. Dysregulation of ERAD and unfolded protein response underlies diseases including cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, and metabolic syndromes. Small molecule modulators of ERAD could enable mechanistic discovery and therapeutic intervention, but few have been identified. Using a high-content screening, we discovered several ERAD-modulating compounds, including NCATS-SM0225, an ERAD inhibitor that unexpectedly binds all three isoforms of VDAC, outer mitochondrial membrane proteins enriched at mitochondria-associated membranes. This led us to discover an essential role for VDACs in ERAD and ER-phagy. NCATS-SM0225 elevates cytosolic, ER, and mitochondrial calcium through calcium influx and IP3R–MCU activity. This calcium imbalance strengthens VDAC1–IP3R coupling and activates PERK, which phosphorylates STIM1 and drives degradation of key ERAD regulators. Loss of these components amplifies PERK signaling and selectively kills cancer cells while sparing normal cells. These findings uncover a cancer-specific role of VDACs in ERAD regulation and calcium signaling, highlighting a therapeutically actionable vulnerability.
Project description:N-terminal (Nt)-acetylation is a highly prevalent co-translational protein modification in eukaryotes, catalyzed by at least five Nt-acetyltransferases (Nat) with differing specificities. Nt-acetylation has been implicated in protein quality control but its broad biological significance remains elusive. We investigated the roles of the two major Nats of S. cerevisiae, NatA and NatB, by performing transcriptome and translatome profiling by using mRNA sequencing and ribosome profiling. The results are combined with global proteome, aggregome and stabilome datasets. To analyze previously proposed physiolocal roles of NatA and NatB in yeast cells on protein stability and interaction specific growth conditions such as different growth media and heat stress are used in addition to physiological growth.
Project description:In eukaryotes, the N-terminal acetylation (NTA) is one of the most frequent protein modifications. In many organisms, and especially in plants, its biological function remains a mystery. In Arabidopsis thaliana, a large part of the proteome acetylation is catalyzed co-translationally by the action of the core NatA complex, which consitst of NAA10 and NAA15, respectively the catalytic and ribosome-anchoring subunits. This complex interacts with the NAA50 protein (NatE), which also has an N-acetyltransferase in organisms such as human and fruit fly. This project focuses on the effect of AtNAA50 knockouts on the activity of the essential NatA complex.
Project description:Protein N-acetyltransferases (NATs) belong to the Gcn5-related N-acetyltransferases (GNATs) superfamily. GNATs catalyze the transfer of acetyl from acetyl-CoA to the reactive amine moiety of a wide range of acceptors. NAT sequences are difficult to distinguish from other members of the GNAT superfamily and there are many uncharacterized GNATs. To facilitate the discovery and characterization of new GNATs, we have developed a new continuous, non-radioactive assay. This assay is virtually independent of the substrate and can be used to get substrate specificity hints. We validated first the assay with the well-characterized Schizosaccharomyces pombe NatA (SpNatA). The SpNatA kinetic parameters were determined with various peptides confirming the robustness of the new assay. We reveal that the longer the peptide substrate the more efficient the enzyme. As a proof of concept of the relevance of the new assay, we characterize a NAA90 member from rice (Oryza sativa), OsGNAT2. We took advantage of an in vivo medium-scale characterization of OsGNAT2 specificity to identify and then validate in vitro several specific peptide substrates. With this assay, we reveal long-range synergic effects of basic residues on OsGNAT2 activity. Overall, this new, high-throughput assay allows better understanding of the substrate specificity and activity of any GNAT.