Abstract
Linker histones (H1s) are conserved and ubiquitous structural components of eukaryotic chromatin. Multiple non-allelic variants of H1, which differ in their DNA/nucleosome binding properties, co-exist in animal and plant cells and have been implicated in the control of genetic programs during development and differentiation. Studies in mammals and Drosophila have revealed diverse post-translational modifications of H1s, most of which are of unknown function. So far, it is not known how this pattern compares with that of H1s from other major lineages of multicellular Eukaryotes. Here, we show that the two main H1variants of a model flowering plant Arabidopsis thaliana are subject to a rich and diverse array of post-translational modifications. The distribution of these modifications in the H1 molecule, especially in its globular domain (GH1), resembles that occurring in mammalian H1s, suggesting that their functional significance is likely to be conserved. While the majority of modifications detected in Arabidopsis H1s, including phosphorylation, acetylation, mono- and dimethylation, formylation, crotonylation and propionylation, have also been reported in H1s of other species, some others have not been previously identified in histones.
Highlights
Linker (H1) histones are abundant structural components of eukaryotic chromatin
HPLC separation of total Arabidopsis H1s obtained by this procedure revealed at least five peaks with retention times characteristic for linker histones (Fig 1a)
It should be noted that complete separation of two sister-proteins with properties as similar as the two major Arabidopsis H1 variants is very difficult, and even more so because both are subject to various post-translational modifications that affect their retention time on the HPLC column
Summary
Linker (H1) histones are abundant structural components of eukaryotic chromatin. Due to their ability to organize inter-nucleosomal linker DNA, they play a fundamental role in the stabilization of compact higher-order chromatin structure, and are major agents limiting the PLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0147908 January 28, 2016Post-Translational Modifications of Histone H1 in Arabidopsis00014) and National Centre for Research and Development (PBS1/A9/16/2012) grants to K. Linker (H1) histones are abundant structural components of eukaryotic chromatin. Due to their ability to organize inter-nucleosomal linker DNA, they play a fundamental role in the stabilization of compact higher-order chromatin structure, and are major agents limiting the PLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0147908. Post-Translational Modifications of Histone H1 in Arabidopsis. 00014) and National Centre for Research and Development (PBS1/A9/16/2012) grants to K. The equipment used was sponsored in part by the Centre for Preclinical Research and Technology (CePT), a project co-sponsored by European Regional Development Fund and Innovative Economy, The National Cohesion Strategy of Poland. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript
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