NRMT2 is an N-terminal monomethylase that primes for its homologue NRMT1

NRMT (N-terminal regulator of chromatin condensation 1 methyltransferase) was the first eukaryotic methyltransferase identified to specifically methylate the free α-amino group of proteins. Since the discovery of this N-terminal methyltransferase, many new substrates have been identified and the modification itself has been shown to regulate DNA-protein interactions. Sequence analysis predicts one close human homologue of NRMT, METTL11B (methyltransferase-like protein 11B, now renamed NRMT2). We show in the present paper for the first time that NRMT2 also has N-terminal methylation activity and recognizes the same N-terminal consensus sequences as NRMT (now NRMT1). Both enzymes have similar tissue expression and cellular localization patterns. However, enzyme assays and MS experiments indicate that they differ in their specific catalytic functions. Although NRMT1 is a distributive methyltransferase that can mono-, di- and tri-methylate its substrates, NRMT2 is primarily a monomethylase. Concurrent expression of NRMT1 and NRMT2 accelerates the production of trimethylation, and we propose that NRMT2 activates NRMT1 by priming its substrates for trimethylation.