The Histone Code of Toxoplasma gondii Comprises Conserved and Unique Posttranslational Modifications

dc.contributor.authorNardelli, Sheila C.
dc.contributor.authorChe, Fa-Yun
dc.contributor.authorSilmon de Monerri, Natalie C.
dc.contributor.authorXiao, Hui
dc.contributor.authorNieves, Edward
dc.contributor.authorMadrid-Aliste, Carlos
dc.contributor.authorAngel, Sergio O.
dc.contributor.authorSullivan, William J., Jr.
dc.contributor.authorAngeletti, Ruth H.
dc.contributor.authorKim, Kami
dc.contributor.authorWeiss, Louis M.
dc.contributor.departmentPharmacology and Toxicology, School of Medicine
dc.date.accessioned2024-08-28T16:16:02Z
dc.date.available2024-08-28T16:16:02Z
dc.date.issued2013-12-10
dc.description.abstractEpigenetic gene regulation has emerged as a major mechanism for gene regulation in all eukaryotes. Histones are small, basic proteins that constitute the major protein component of chromatin, and posttranslational modifications (PTM) of histones are essential for epigenetic gene regulation. The different combinations of histone PTM form the histone code for an organism, marking functional units of chromatin that recruit macromolecular complexes that govern chromatin structure and regulate gene expression. To characterize the repertoire of Toxoplasma gondii histone PTM, we enriched histones using standard acid extraction protocols and analyzed them with several complementary middle-down and bottom-up proteomic approaches with the high-resolution Orbitrap mass spectrometer using collision-induced dissociation (CID), higher-energy collisional dissociation (HCD), and/or electron transfer dissociation (ETD) fragmentation. We identified 249 peptides with unique combinations of PTM that comprise the T. gondii histone code. T. gondii histones share a high degree of sequence conservation with human histones, and many modifications are conserved between these species. In addition, T. gondii histones have unique modifications not previously identified in other species. Finally, T. gondii histones are modified by succinylation, propionylation, and formylation, recently described histone PTM that have not previously been identified in parasitic protozoa. The characterization of the T. gondii histone code will facilitate in-depth analysis of how epigenetic regulation affects gene expression in pathogenic apicomplexan parasites and identify a new model system for elucidating the biological functions of novel histone PTM. Importance: Toxoplasma gondii is among the most common parasitic infections in humans. The transition between the different stages of the T. gondii life cycle are essential for parasite virulence and survival. These differentiation events are accompanied by significant changes in gene expression, and the control mechanisms for these transitions have not been elucidated. Important mechanisms that are involved in the control of gene expression are the epigenetic modifications that have been identified in several eukaryotes. T. gondii has a full complement of histone-modifying enzymes, histones, and variants. In this paper, we identify over a hundred PTM and a full repertoire of PTM combinations for T. gondii histones, providing the first large-scale characterization of the T. gondii histone code and an essential initial step for understanding how epigenetic modifications affect gene expression and other processes in this organism.
dc.eprint.versionFinal published version
dc.identifier.citationNardelli SC, Che FY, Silmon de Monerri NC, et al. The histone code of Toxoplasma gondii comprises conserved and unique posttranslational modifications. mBio. 2013;4(6):e00922-13. Published 2013 Dec 10. doi:10.1128/mBio.00922-13
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1805/43014
dc.language.isoen_US
dc.publisherAmerican Society for Microbiology
dc.relation.isversionof10.1128/mBio.00922-13
dc.relation.journalmBio
dc.rightsAttribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Internationalen
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
dc.sourcePMC
dc.subjectAmino acid sequence
dc.subjectGenetic epigenesis
dc.subjectProtozoan proteins
dc.subjectToxoplasma
dc.titleThe Histone Code of Toxoplasma gondii Comprises Conserved and Unique Posttranslational Modifications
dc.typeArticle
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