A code for lysine modifications of a silica biomineralizing silaffin protein

Abstract

A mass of codes: Lysine-rich silaffin proteins from diatoms guide silica formation by self-assembly processes. Aided by mass spectrometry, the analysis of 28 posttranslationally modified lysine residues in silaffin-3 from Thalassiosira pseudonana uncovers an amino acid sequence based code selecting the type of modification. This code may be a key element in the genetic control of species-specific silica architectures. (Figure Presented) © 2007 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA.