biology

Palmitoyl acyltransferase

Palmitoyl acyltransferase is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Palmitoyl acyltransferase rather than just read about it. In short: Palmitoyl acyltransferases are a group of enzymes that transfer palmityl group to -SH group on cysteine on a protein. This modification increases the hydrophobicity of the protein, thereby increasing the association to plasma membrane or other intramembraneous compartments.

Key takeaways

Palmitoyl acyltransferase belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Palmitoyl acyltransferase to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Palmitoyl acyltransferase from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Palmitoyl acyltransferases are a group of enzymes that transfer palmityl group to -SH group on cysteine on a protein. This modification increases the hydrophobicity of the protein, thereby increasing the association to plasma membrane or other intramembraneous compartments.

Domain structure The palmitoyl acyltransferase was isolated and identified in 1999. The catalytic domain of the protein has aspartate-histidine-histidine-cysteine (DHHC) in the core and therefore is called DHHC domain.

Substrate proteins The example of substrate includes H-Ras, N-ras, R-Ras, RhoB, Cdc42 inform 2, Rab10, Galpha subunit of trimeric GTP binding proteins, Src family tyrosine kinases, GAP53, eNOS, AMPA receptor subunit GluR1 and GluR2, GABAA receptor gamma2 subunit, aquaporin, KV1.1, rhodopsin, beta2-adrenergic receptor, and PSD-95. https://swisspalm.org/enzymes

Physiological Functions The protein palmitoylation is a reversible process. The addition of palmitoyl group increase the membrane association of the substrate protein while the removal by palmitoyl thioesterase decreases the membrane association.

References Draper, J. M.; Smith, C. D. (2009). "Palmitoyl acyltransferase assays and inhibitors (Review)". Molecular Membrane Biology. 26 (1): 5–13. doi:10.1080/09687680802683839. PMC 2635919. PMID 19152182. Creaser, S. P.; Peterson, B. R. (2002). "Sensitive and rapid analysis of protein palmitoylation with a synthetic cell-permeable mimic of SRC oncoproteins". Journal of the American Chemical Society. 124 (11): 2444–2445. Bibcode:2002JAChS.124.2444C. doi:10.1021/ja017671x. PMID 11890786.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Palmitoyl acyltransferase

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Palmitoyl acyltransferase claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Palmitoyl acyltransferase before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Palmitoyl acyltransferase ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Palmitoyl acyltransferase

In research: Palmitoyl acyltransferase appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Palmitoyl acyltransferase in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Palmitoyl acyltransferase is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Carcinogenesis, EC 2.3.1, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Palmitoyl acyltransferase outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Palmitoyl acyltransferase in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Palmitoyl acyltransferase means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Palmitoyl acyltransferase out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Palmitoyl acyltransferase in simple terms?

Why does Palmitoyl acyltransferase matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Palmitoyl acyltransferase?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Palmitoyl acyltransferase.