C2H2 zinc-finger recognition of biomolecules.
- Author:
Duo LU
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- From:
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica
2013;48(6):834-41
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
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Abstract:
C2H2 zinc-finger motif presents in 3% of proteins that are encoded in the human genome, and has the abilities to recognize DNA, RNA and protein. With nearly 3 decades of efforts, the mechanisms of zinc-finger mediated biomolecule recognitions have been studied to various extents. Zinc-finger binds into the major groove of DNA double helix, establishes an one-to-one recognition format between DNA bases and certain amino acids in a zinc-finger, and achieves specificity based on DNA sequences. While RNA molecules show a large variety in their structures, zinc-finger recognizes RNA through the collected information of specially displayed bases and special backbone folding. Initial studies have been performed on zinc-finger mediated protein-protein interactions. Existing data indicate multiple recognition modes. The studies on molecular mechanism have supported the development of engineered zinc-fingers, which have been introduced into applications. For its wide existence, large functional diversity and potential in translational applications, zinc-finger deserves a systematic study in every aspect.
