Deciphering arginine methylation: Tudor tells the tale

Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2011 Sep 14;12(10):629-42. doi: 10.1038/nrm3185.

Abstract

Proteins can be modified by post-translational modifications such as phosphorylation, methylation, acetylation and ubiquitylation, creating binding sites for specific protein domains. Methylation has pivotal roles in the formation of complexes that are involved in cellular regulation, including in the generation of small RNAs. Arginine methylation was discovered half a century ago, but the ability of methylarginine sites to serve as binding motifs for members of the Tudor protein family, and the functional significance of the protein-protein interactions that are mediated by Tudor domains, has only recently been appreciated. Tudor proteins are now known to be present in PIWI complexes, where they are thought to interact with methylated PIWI proteins and regulate the PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA) pathway in the germ line.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Arginine / metabolism*
  • Drosophila Proteins / genetics
  • Drosophila Proteins / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Membrane Transport Proteins / genetics
  • Membrane Transport Proteins / metabolism
  • Methylation
  • Protein Binding
  • Proteins / genetics
  • Proteins / metabolism*
  • RNA, Small Interfering / metabolism

Substances

  • Drosophila Proteins
  • Membrane Transport Proteins
  • Proteins
  • RNA, Small Interfering
  • tud protein, Drosophila
  • Arginine