Deacetylation of Ku70 by SIRT6 attenuates Bax-mediated apoptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma

SIRT6 is a class III histone deacetylase that has been implicated in HCC development. We previously reported that SIRT6 potentiated apoptosis evasion in hepatocellular carcinoma by inhibiting both Bax expression and mitochondrial translocalization. However, the mechanism underlying SIRT6-mediated inhibition of Bax mitochondrial localization remains elusive. In this study, we found that although SIRT6 had no effect on the expression level of Ku70, SIRT6 could interact with Ku70 and deacetylate it. The increased acetylation of Ku70 in SIRT6-depleted cells disrupt its interaction with Bax, which finally resulted in Bax mitochondrial translocalization. Furthermore, lysine K542 on Ku70 was the target for deacetylation by SIRT6. Ku70K542Q mutation abolished suppression of association between Ku70 and Bax and caused redistribution of Bax to the cytosol in SIRT6-depleted cells. Finally, Ku70K542Q mutation could reversed the inhibition of growth and apoptosis promotion mediated by SIRT6 silencing. Together, our findings revealed SIRT6 could block the mitochondrial translocation of Bax and decrease the apoptotic ratio of HCC cells by deacetylation of Ku70. SIRT6 may serve as a promising target for developing targeted therapies for HCC in the future.