Histone acetyltransferases (HATs) are enzymes that acetylate conserved lysine amino acids on histone proteins by transferring an acetyl group from acetyl-CoA to form ε-N-acetyllysine. DNA is wrapped around histones, and, by transferring an acetyl group to the histones, genes can be turned on and off. In general, histone acetylation increases gene expression.
Choline acetyltransferase is a transferase enzyme responsible for the synthesis of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. ChAT catalyzes the transfer of an acetyl group from the coenzyme acetyl-CoA to choline, yielding acetylcholine (ACh). ChAT is found in high concentration in cholinergic neurons, both in the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nervous system (PNS). As with most nerve terminal proteins, ChAT is produced in the body of the neuron and is transported to the nerve terminal, where its concentration is highest. Presence of ChAT in a nerve cell classifies this cell as a "cholinergic" neuron. In humans, the choline acetyltransferase enzyme is encoded by the CHAT gene.
N-acetyltransferase (NAT) is an enzyme that catalyzes the transfer of acetyl groups from acetyl-CoA to arylamines, arylhydroxylamines and arylhydrazines. They have wide specificity for aromatic amines, particularly serotonin, and can also catalyze acetyl transfer between arylamines without CoA. N-acetyltransferases are cytosolic enzymes found in the liver and many tissues of most mammalian species, except the dog and fox, which cannot acetylate xenobiotics.
The histone code is a hypothesis that the transcription of genetic information encoded in DNA is in part regulated by chemical modifications to histone proteins, primarily on their unstructured ends. Together with similar modifications such as DNA methylation it is part of the epigenetic code. Histones associate with DNA to form nucleosomes, which themselves bundle to form chromatin fibers, which in turn make up the more familiar chromosome. Histones are globular proteins with a flexible N-terminus that protrudes from the nucleosome. Many of the histone tail modifications correlate very well to chromatin structure and both histone modification state and chromatin structure correlate well to gene expression levels. The critical concept of the histone code hypothesis is that the histone modifications serve to recruit other proteins by specific recognition of the modified histone via protein domains specialized for such purposes, rather than through simply stabilizing or destabilizing the interaction between histone and the underlying DNA. These recruited proteins then act to alter chromatin structure actively or to promote transcription. For details of gene expression regulation by histone modifications see table below.
Aralkylamine N-acetyltransferase (AANAT), also known as arylalkylamine N-acetyltransferase or serotonin N-acetyltransferase (SNAT), is an enzyme that is involved in the day/night rhythmic production of melatonin, by modification of serotonin. It is in humans encoded by the ~2.5 kb AANAT gene containing four exons, located on chromosome 17q25. The gene is translated into a 23 kDa large enzyme. It is well conserved through evolution and the human form of the protein is 80 percent identical to sheep and rat AANAT. It is an acetyl-CoA-dependent enzyme of the GCN5-related family of N-acetyltransferases (GNATs). It may contribute to multifactorial genetic diseases such as altered behavior in sleep/wake cycle and research is on-going with the aim of developing drugs that regulate AANAT function.
Histone acetylation and deacetylation are the processes by which the lysine residues within the N-terminal tail protruding from the histone core of the nucleosome are acetylated and deacetylated as part of gene regulation.
Histone-modifying enzymes are enzymes involved in the modification of histone substrates after protein translation and affect cellular processes including gene expression. To safely store the eukaryotic genome, DNA is wrapped around four core histone proteins, which then join to form nucleosomes. These nucleosomes further fold together into highly condensed chromatin, which renders the organism's genetic material far less accessible to the factors required for gene transcription, DNA replication, recombination and repair. Subsequently, eukaryotic organisms have developed intricate mechanisms to overcome this repressive barrier imposed by the chromatin through histone modification, a type of post-translational modification which typically involves covalently attaching certain groups to histone residues. Once added to the histone, these groups elicit either a loose and open histone conformation, euchromatin, or a tight and closed histone conformation, heterochromatin. Euchromatin marks active transcription and gene expression, as the light packing of histones in this way allows entry for proteins involved in the transcription process. As such, the tightly packed heterochromatin marks the absence of current gene expression.
In enzymology, an alpha-tubulin N-acetyltransferase is an enzyme which is encoded by the ATAT1 gene.
In enzymology, glucosamine-phosphate N-acetyltransferase (GNA) is an enzyme that catalyzes the transfer of an acetyl group from acetyl-CoA to the primary amine in glucosamide-6-phosphate, generating a free CoA and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine-6-phosphate.
N-alpha-acetyltransferase 10 (NAA10) also known as NatA catalytic subunit Naa10 and arrest-defective protein 1 homolog A (ARD1A) is an enzyme subunit that in humans is encoded NAA10 gene. Together with its auxiliary subunit Naa15, Naa10 constitutes the NatA complex that specifically catalyzes the transfer of an acetyl group from acetyl-CoA to the N-terminal primary amino group of certain proteins. In higher eukaryotes, 5 other N-acetyltransferase (NAT) complexes, NatB-NatF, have been described that differ both in substrate specificity and subunit composition.
Histone acetyltransferase KAT7 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the KAT7 gene. It specifically acetylates H4 histones at the lysine12 residue (H4K12) and is necessary for origin licensing and DNA replication. KAT7 associates with origins of replication during G1 phase of the cell cycle through complexing with CDT1. Geminin is thought to inhibit the acetyltransferase activity of KAT7 when KAT7 and CDT1 are complexed together.
K(lysine) acetyltransferase 6A (KAT6A), is an enzyme that, in humans, is encoded by the KAT6A gene. This gene is located on human chromosome 8, band 8p11.21.
N-alpha-acetyltransferase 15, NatA auxiliary subunit also known as gastric cancer antigen Ga19 (GA19), NMDA receptor-regulated protein 1 (NARG1), and Tbdn100 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the NAA15 gene. NARG1 is the auxiliary subunit of the NatA complex. This NatA complex can associate with the ribosome and catalyzes the transfer of an acetyl group to the Nα-terminal amino group of proteins as they emerge from the exit tunnel.
K(lysine) acetyltransferase 8 (KAT8) is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the KAT8 gene.
Histone acetyltransferase 1, also known as HAT1, is an enzyme that, in humans, is encoded by the HAT1 gene.
Protein acetylation are acetylation reactions that occur within living cells as drug metabolism, by enzymes in the liver and other organs. Pharmaceuticals frequently employ acetylation to enable such esters to cross the blood–brain barrier, where they are deacetylated by enzymes (carboxylesterases) in a manner similar to acetylcholine. Examples of acetylated pharmaceuticals are diacetylmorphine (heroin), acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin), THC-O-acetate, and diacerein. Conversely, drugs such as isoniazid are acetylated within the liver during drug metabolism. A drug that depends on such metabolic transformations in order to act is termed a prodrug.
H3K27ac is an epigenetic modification to the DNA packaging protein histone H3. It is a mark that indicates acetylation of the lysine residue at N-terminal position 27 of the histone H3 protein.
H4K16ac is an epigenetic modification to the DNA packaging protein Histone H4. It is a mark that indicates the acetylation at the 16th lysine residue of the histone H4 protein.
H4K91ac is an epigenetic modification to the DNA packaging protein histone H4. It is a mark that indicates the acetylation at the 91st lysine residue of the histone H4 protein. No known diseases are attributed to this mark but it might be implicated in melanoma.
Nα-acetyltransferase 60 (NAA60) also known as NatF is a member of the N-terminal acetyltransferase (NAT) family of proteins. NATs bind to acetyl-coenzyme A (Ac-CoA) as well as to the protein N-terminus, and enzymatically transfer the acetyl group from Ac-CoA to the free backbone amino group (NH3+) on the first residue of the protein. NATs are mono- or multisubunit enzymes consisting of one catalytic subunit and up to two auxiliary subunits, however, only a catalytic subunit of NAA60 has been identified so far.
3D structure of histone acetyltransferase
3D Structure of choline acetyltransferase
3D structure of serotonin N-acetyltransferase
