Nε-Thioacetyl-lysine: A multi-facet functional probe for enzymatic protein lysine Nε-deacetylation

Peptides containing Nε-thioacetyl-lysine and Nε-acetyl-lysine were evaluated for their de(thio)acetylation catalyzed by human HDAC8 and SIRT1, two distinct protein deacetylases. Nε-Thioacetyl-lysine was found to be a mimic of Nε-acetyl-lysine for HDAC8-catalyzed reaction, but to confer inhibition against SIRT1. These results point to further diverse applications based on Nε-thioacetyl-lysine.