非组蛋白甲基转移酶样21(METTL21)研究进展

Research progress of non-histone methyltransferase-like 21(METTL21)

蛋白质甲基化修饰是一种由甲基转移酶介导完成的翻译后修饰,且组蛋白的甲基化修饰对基因表达的影响得到了深入研究。近年来研究表明,非组蛋白甲基化修饰是细胞功能的基础,也与疾病有关,因此,非组蛋白甲基化修饰酶也成为研究其生物学功能的重点。非组蛋白甲基转移酶样21(methyltransferase-like 21,METTL21)亚家族包括四个成员,分别是METTL21A、METTL21B、METTL21C和METTL21D。这四个成员可以催化组蛋白或非组蛋白的翻译后甲基化修饰,维持蛋白质代谢平衡和细胞内环境稳态,从而在调节肿瘤发生、肌肉减少症和神经退行性疾病中发挥重要作用。本文陈述了非组蛋白的甲基化类型,总结了已被证明的METTL21家族四个成员的甲基化底物及其生物学意义,并指出了研究甲基化修饰的局限性以及目前已有的研究方法,为研究甲基化修饰的生物学功能提供理论依据。

Protein methylation is a post-translational modification mediated by methyltransferases, and the effect of histone methylation on gene expression has been studied in depth. Recent studies have shown that non-histone methylation modification is the basis of cell function and is also related to diseases. Therefore,non-histone methylation modification enzymes have also become the focus of research on their biological functions. The non-histone methyltransferase-like 21(METTL21) subfamily includes four members, which are METTL21A, METTL21B, METTL21C and METTL21D. These four members can catalyze the posttranslational methylation modification of histone or non-histone proteins, maintain protein metabolism homeostasis and intracellular homeostasis, and thus play an important role in regulating tumorigenesis,sarcopenia, and neurodegenerative diseases. We discussed the methylation patterns of non-histone proteins in this paper, and summarized the proven methylation substrates of four members of the METTL21 family, and their biological significance. We also reviewed the limitations of studying methylation modification and the existing research methods, and provided a theoretical basis for studying the biological function of methylation modification.