N-Alpha-Acetyltransferase 50 (NaA50)

By searching for sequences similar to yeast Nat5, Arnesen et al. (2006) identified human NAT13, which they called hNAT5. The deduced 169-amino acid protein contains a motif essential for acetyl-CoA binding, and it has a calculated molecular mass of 19.4 kD. NAT13 shares 25% identity with yeast Nat5 and 70% identity with the Drosophila homolog, San. RT-PCR detected NAT13 in all human cell lines examined. Epitope-tagged NAT13 localized to the cytoplasm of transfected HeLa cells.The N-alpha-acetyltransferase complex cotranslationally acetylates the N termini of nascent polypeptides. In yeast, this complex contains Ard1 , Nat1 (NARG1), and Nat5. By analyzing proteins coimmunoprecipitated from human embryonic kidney cells, Arnesen et al. (2006) found that NAT13, like yeast Nat5, associated with ARD1 and NARG1.