A pan-specific antibody for direct detection of protein histidine phosphorylation

Abstract

Despite its importance in central metabolism and bacterial cell signaling, protein histidine phosphorylation has remained elusive with respect to its extent and functional roles in biological systems due to the lack of adequate research tools. We report the development of the first pan-pHis antibody using a stable phosphohistidine (pHis) mimetic as the hapten. This antibody was successfully used in ELISA, Western blot, dot blot, immunoprecipitation, and in detection and identification of histidine-phosphorylated proteins from native cell lysates when coupled with mass spectrometric analysis. We also observed that protein pHis levels in E. coli lysates depend on carbon source and nitrogen availability in the growth media. In particular, we found that pHis levels on PpsA are sensitive to nitrogen availability in vivo and that α-ketoglutarate (α-KG) inhibits phosphotransfer from phosphorylated phosphoenolpyruvate synthase (PpsA) to pyruvate. We expect this antibody to open opportunities for investigating other pHis-proteins and their functions.