Sirtuin Enzymes: Key to Unlocking Aging Secrets

Penn State researchers have used cryo-electron microscopy to reveal how sirtuin enzymes interact with nucleosomes to regulate aging and metabolic processes. Sirtuins are enzymes found in organisms ranging from bacteria to humans that play important roles in aging, sensing DNA damage, and suppressing tumors in various cancers. The researchers identified how SIRT6 positions itself on the nucleosome in order to remove an acetyl group from the K9 position on the histone called H3. Understanding how sirtuins interact with the nucleosome to remove this flag could inform future drug discovery efforts.