Abstract
The protein encoded by the sirt1 gene is an enzyme, SirT1, that couples the hydrolysis of NAD(+) to the deacetylation of acetyl-lysine residues in substrate proteins. Mutations of the sirt1 gene that fail to encode protein have been introduced into the mouse germ line, and the animals homozygous for these null mutations have various physiological abnormalities. To determine which of the characteristics of these sirt1(-/-) mice are a consequence of the absence of the catalytic activity of the SirT1 protein, we created a mouse strain carrying a point mutation (H355Y) that ablates the catalytic activity but does not affect the amount of the SirT1 protein. Mice carrying point mutations in both sirt1 genes, sirt1(Y/Y), have a phenotype that is overlapping but not identical to that of the sirt1-null animals. The sirt1(Y/Y) phenotype is significantly milder than that seen in the sirt1(-/-) animals. For example, female sirt1(Y/Y) animals are fertile, while sirt1(-/-) females are sterile. On the other hand, both sirt1(-/-) and sirt1(Y/Y) male mice are sterile and hypermetabolic. We report that sirt1(Y/Y) mice respond aberrantly to caloric restriction, although the effects are more subtle than seen in sirt1(-/-) mice. Thus, the SirT1 protein has functions that can be attributed to the catalytic activity of the protein, as well as other functions that are conferred by the protein itself.