No abstract

Evidence suggesting that eukaryotes and archaea use reversible N ε-lysine (N ε-Lys) acetylation to modulate gene expression has been reported, but evidence for bacterial use of N ε-Lys acetylation for this purpose is lacking. Here, we report data in support of the notion that bacteria can control gene expression by modulating the acetylation state of transcription factors (TFs). We screened the E. coli proteome for substrates of the bacterial Gcn5-like protein acetyltransferase (Pat). Pat acetylated four TFs, including the RcsB global regulatory protein, which controls cell division, and capsule and flagellum biosynthesis in many bacteria. Pat acetylated residue Lys180 of RcsB, and the NAD+-dependent Sir2 (sirtuin)-like protein deacetylase (CobB) deacetylated acetylated RcsB (RcsBAc), demonstrating that N ε-Lys acetylation of RcsB is reversible. Analysis of RcsBAc and variant RcsB proteins carrying substitutions at Lys180 provided biochemical and physiological evidence implicating Lys180 as a critical residue for RcsB DNA-binding activity. These findings further the likelihood that reversible N ε-Lys acetylation of transcription factors is a mode of regulation of gene expression used by all cells.

Despite the fact that many genomes have been decoded, proteome chips comprising individually purified proteins have been reported only for budding yeast, mainly because of the complexity and difficulty of high-throughput protein purification. To facilitate proteomics studies in prokaryotes, we have developed a high-throughput protein purification protocol that allowed us to purify 4,256 proteins encoded by the Escherichia coli K12 strain within 10 h. The purified proteins were then spotted onto glass slides to create E. coli proteome chips. We used these chips to develop assays for identifying proteins involved in the recognition of potential base damage in DNA. By using a group of DNA probes, each containing a mismatched base pair or an abasic site, we found a small number of proteins that could recognize each type of probe with high affinity and specificity. We further evaluated two of these proteins, YbaZ and YbcN, by biochemical analyses. The assembly of libraries containing DNA probes with specific modifications and the availability of E. coli proteome chips have the potential to reveal important interactions between proteins and nucleic acids that are time-consuming and difficult to detect using other techniques.