# Molecular imaging approaches to interrogate mammalian signaling by lysine acylation

> **NIH NIH R35** · UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO · 2020 · $376,440

## Abstract

Project Summary
Thousands of proteins in the human proteome are subjected to modification by reversible lysine
acetylation, which is now recognized as a key regulator of diverse processes such as
epigenetics and metabolism. The careful balance between the expression and activity of lysine
acetyl transferases (KATs) and lysine deacetylases (KDACs) maintains the acetylome of a cell.
Our long-term goal is to develop a mechanistic understanding of how lysine acetylation is
controlled and how the mark effects cell state. Our current focus is to develop a new class of
small molecule fluorescent chemical tools that report on lysine deacetylation activities in living
cells with spatial resolution. We will deploy this new family of chemical tools to test the
hypothesis that KDAC signaling is in part mediated by subcellular distribution, which controls
access to substrates and local cofactors. This hypothesis could help explain some of the
ambiguous results associated with lysine acetylation that have been observed, as the biological
consequence of modulation of a specific KDAC isoform may be masked by other isoforms in a
cell-type or disease specific manner. We postulate that a key to understanding how lysine
acetylation is regulated is to monitor the overall amounts of KAT and KDAC activities with
spatial-temporal resolution. Our primary biological interests right now deal with roles of KDACs
outside of the nucleus, in particular in the mitochondria and the cytoplasm, while pursing
mechanistic studies in the context of metabolism and breast cancer.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9933047
- **Project number:** 5R35GM119840-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
- **Principal Investigator:** Bryan Dickinson
- **Activity code:** R35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $376,440
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2016-07-15 → 2021-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9933047

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9933047, Molecular imaging approaches to interrogate mammalian signaling by lysine acylation (5R35GM119840-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9933047. Licensed CC0.

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