title: Acetyl-phosphate is a critical determinant of lysine acetylation in E. coli.
abstract: Lysine acetylation is a frequently occurring posttranslational modification in bacteria; however, little is known about its origin and regulation. Using the model bacterium Escherichia coli (E. coli), we found that most acetylation occurred at a low level and accumulated in growth-arrested cells in a manner that depended on the formation of acetyl-phosphate (AcP) through glycolysis. Mutant cells unable to produce AcP had significantly reduced acetylation levels, while mutant cells unable to convert AcP to acetate had significantly elevated acetylation levels. We showed that AcP can chemically acetylate lysine residues in vitro and that AcP levels are correlated with acetylation levels in vivo, suggesting that AcP may acetylate proteins nonenzymatically in cells. These results uncover a critical role for AcP in bacterial acetylation and indicate that most acetylation in E. coli occurs at a low level and is dynamically affected by metabolism and cell proliferation in a global, uniform manner.
authors.affiliation: The NNF Center for Protein Research, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Blegdamsvej 3B, DK-2200 Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: Brian T
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Weinert
authors.forename: Vytautas
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Iesmantavicius
authors.forename: Sebastian A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Wagner
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schölz
authors.forename: Bertil
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gummesson
authors.forename: Petra
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Beli
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nyström
authors.forename: Chunaram
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Choudhary
mesh_terms: D000085:Acetates / Q000378:metabolism*; D000107:Acetylation; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D006019:Glycolysis; D008239:Lysine / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics; D010755:Organophosphates / Q000378:metabolism*; D011499:Protein Processing, Post-Translational; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry
chemical_list: D000085:Acetates; D010755:Organophosphates; C011632:acetyl phosphate; D008239:Lysine