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- *************************
- * N-myristoylation site *
- *************************
-
- An appreciable number of eukaryotic proteins are acylated by the covalent
- addition of myristate (a C14-saturated fatty acid) to their N-terminal residue
- via an amide linkage [1,2]. The sequence specificity of the enzyme responsible
- for this modification, myristoyl CoA:protein N-myristoyl transferase (NMT),
- has been derived from the sequence of known N-myristoylated proteins and from
- studies using synthetic peptides. It seems to be the following:
-
- - The N-terminal residue must be glycine.
- - In position 2, uncharged residues are allowed. Charged residues, proline
- and large hydrophobic residues are not allowed.
- - In positions 3 and 4, most, if not all, residues are allowed.
- - In position 5, small uncharged residues are allowed (Ala, Ser, Thr, Cys,
- Asn and Gly). Serine is favored.
- - In position 6, proline is not allowed.
-
- -Consensus pattern: G-{EDRKHPFYW}-x(2)-[STAGCN]-{P}
- [G is the N-myristoylation site]
-
- -Note: we deliberately include as potential myristoylated glycine residues,
- those which are internal to a sequence. It could well be that the sequence
- under study represents a viral polyprotein precursor and that subsequent
- proteolytic processing could expose an internal glycine as the N-terminal of
- a mature protein.
-
- -Last update: October 1989 / Pattern and text revised.
-
- [ 1] Towler D.A., Gordon J.I., Adams S.P., Glaser L.
- Annu. Rev. Biochem. 57:69-99(1988).
- [ 2] Grand R.J.A.
- Biochem. J. 258:625-638(1989).
-