The acetyltransferase BmCBP changes the acetylation modification of BmSP3 and affects its protein expression in silkworm, Bombyx mori.

BACKGROUND

Protein acetylation is an important post-translational modification (PTM) that widely exists in organisms. As a reversible PTM, acetylation modification can regulate the function of proteins with high efficiency. In the previous study, the acetylation sites of silkworm proteins were identified on a large scale by nano-HPLC/MS/MS (nanoscale high performance liquid chromatography-tandem secondary mass spectrometry), and a total of 11 acetylation sites were discovered on Bombyx mori nutrient-storage protein SP3 (BmSP3). The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of acetylation level on BmSP3.

METHODS AND RESULTS

In this study, the acetylation of BmSP3 was further verified by immunoprecipitation (IP) and Western blotting. Then, it was confirmed that acetylation could up-regulate the expression of BmSP3 by improving its protein stability in BmN cells. Co-IP and RNAi experiments showed acetyltransferase BmCBP could bind to BmSP3 and catalyze its acetylation modification, then regulate the expression of BmSP3. Furthermore, the knock-down of BmCBP could improve the ubiquitination level of BmSP3. Both acetylation and ubiquitination occur on the side chain of lysine residues, therefore, we speculated that the acetylation of BmSP3 catalyzed by BmCBP could competitively inhibit its ubiquitination modification and improve its protein stability by inhibiting ubiquitin-mediated proteasome degradation pathway, and thereby increase the expression and intracellular accumulation.

CONCLUSIONS

BmCBP catalyzes the acetylation of BmSP3 and may improve the stability of BmSP3 by competitive ubiquitination. This conclusion provides a new functional basis for the extensive involvement of acetylation in the regulation of nutrient storage and utilization in silkworm, Bombyx mori.