Federici Luca, Masulli Michele, De Laurenzi Vincenzo, Allocati Nerino
Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine and Dentistry, University "G. d' Annunzio", 66100 Chieti, Italy.
CAST (Center for Advanced Studies and Technology), University "G. d' Annunzio", 66100 Chieti, Italy.
Microorganisms. 2025 Feb 27;13(3):527. doi: 10.3390/microorganisms13030527.
Protein glutathionylation is defined as a reversible, ubiquitous post-translational modification, resulting in the formation of mixed disulfides between glutathione and proteins' cysteine residues. Glutathionylation has been implicated in several cellular mechanisms ranging from protection from oxidative stress to the control of cellular homeostasis and the cell cycle. A significant body of research has examined the multifaceted effects of this post-translational modification under physiological conditions in eukaryotes, with a particular focus on its impact on the development of various diseases in humans. In contrast, the role of glutathionylation in prokaryotic organisms remains to be extensively investigated. However, there has been a recent increase in the number of studies investigating this issue, providing details about the role of glutathione and other related thiols as post-translational modifiers of selected bacterial proteins. It can be concluded that in addition to the classical role of such thiols in protecting against cysteine oxidation and consequent protein inactivation, many more specialized roles of glutathionylation in bacterial pathogenicity, virulence, interspecies competition and survival, and control of gene expression are emerging, and new ones may emerge in the future. In this short review, we aim to summarize the current state-of-the-art in this field of research.
蛋白质谷胱甘肽化被定义为一种可逆的、普遍存在的翻译后修饰，会在谷胱甘肽与蛋白质的半胱氨酸残基之间形成混合二硫键。谷胱甘肽化参与了多种细胞机制，从抵御氧化应激到控制细胞内稳态和细胞周期。大量研究探讨了这种翻译后修饰在真核生物生理条件下的多方面影响，尤其关注其对人类各种疾病发展的影响。相比之下，谷胱甘肽化在原核生物中的作用仍有待深入研究。然而，最近研究这个问题的数量有所增加，提供了有关谷胱甘肽和其他相关硫醇作为特定细菌蛋白质翻译后修饰剂作用的详细信息。可以得出结论，除了这类硫醇在防止半胱氨酸氧化及随之而来的蛋白质失活方面的经典作用外，谷胱甘肽化在细菌致病性、毒力、种间竞争与生存以及基因表达控制等方面的更多特殊作用正在显现，未来可能还会出现新的作用。在这篇简短的综述中，我们旨在总结该研究领域的当前最新进展。
