Post-translational myristoylation: Fat matters in cellular life and death.
Myristoylation corresponds to the irreversible covalent linkage of the 14-carbon saturated fatty acid, myristic acid, to the N-terminal glycine of many eukaryotic and viral proteins. It is catalyzed by N-myristoyltransferase. Typically, the myristate moiety participates in protein subcellular localization by facilitating protein-membrane interactions as well as protein-protein interactions. Myristoylated proteins are crucial components of a wide variety of functions, which include many signalling pathways, oncogenesis or viral replication. Initially, myristoylation was described as a co-translational reaction that occurs after the removal of the initiator methionine residue. However, it is now well established that myristoylation can also occur post-translationally in apoptotic cells. Indeed, during apoptosis hundreds of proteins are cleaved by caspases and in many cases this cleavage exposes an N-terminal glycine within a cryptic myristoylation consensus sequence, which can be myristoylated. The principal objective of this review is to provide an overview on the implication of myristoylation in health and disease with a special emphasis on post-translational myristoylation. In addition, new advancements in the detection and identification of myristoylated proteins are also briefly reviewed.
Department of Cell Biology, School of Molecular and Systems Medicine, MSB-5-55, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2H7, Canada.
Dale D O
DD
Martin
Erwan
E
Beauchamp
Luc G
LG
Berthiaume
D000217:Acyltransferases / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism; D016923:Cell Death / Q000502:physiology; D002468:Cell Physiological Phenomena; D005223:Fats / Q000378:metabolism; D005998:Glycine / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D019814:Myristic Acid / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D011499:Protein Processing, Post-Translational / Q000502:physiology; D011506:Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction
D005223:Fats; D011506:Proteins; D019814:Myristic Acid; D000217:Acyltransferases; C050480:glycylpeptide N-tetradecanoyltransferase; D020169:Caspases; D005998:Glycine