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Updated: Sep 3, 2025

In Vitro Analysis of E3 Ubiquitin Ligase Function
Published on: May 14, 2021
The NEL Family of Bacterial E3 Ubiquitin Ligases
Andrea Bullones-Bolaños1, Joaquín Bernal-Bayard1, Francisco Ramos-Morales1
1Departamento de Genética, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de Sevilla, 41012 Sevilla, Spain.
Abstract:
Some pathogenic or symbiotic Gram-negative bacteria can manipulate the ubiquitination system of the eukaryotic host cell using a variety of strategies. Members of the genera Salmonella, Shigella, Sinorhizobium, and Ralstonia, among others, express E3 ubiquitin ligases that belong to the NEL family. These bacteria use type III secretion systems to translocate these proteins into host cells, where they will find their targets. In this review, we first introduce type III secretion systems and the ubiquitination process and consider the various ways bacteria use to alter the ubiquitin ligation machinery. We then focus on the members of the NEL family, their expression, translocation, and subcellular localization in the host cell, and we review what is known about the structure of these proteins, their function in virulence or symbiosis, and their specific targets.
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