SNAP output for PDB entry 5t5k [SNAP web server]

PDB-id

5t5k; SNAP-derived features in text and JSON formats; DNAproDB

Class

DNA binding protein-DNA

Method

X-ray (4.0 Å)

Summary

Structure of histone-based chromatin in archaea

Reference

Mattiroli F, Bhattacharyya S, Dyer PN, White AE, Sandman K, Burkhart BW, Byrne KR, Lee T, Ahn NG, Santangelo TJ, Reeve JN, Luger K (2017): "Structure of histone-based chromatin in Archaea." Science, 357, 609-612. doi: 10.1126/science.aaj1849.

Abstract

Small basic proteins present in most Archaea share a common ancestor with the eukaryotic core histones. We report the crystal structure of an archaeal histone-DNA complex. DNA wraps around an extended polymer, formed by archaeal histone homodimers, in a quasi-continuous superhelix with the same geometry as DNA in the eukaryotic nucleosome. Substitutions of a conserved glycine at the interface of adjacent protein layers destabilize archaeal chromatin, reduce growth rate, and impair transcription regulation, confirming the biological importance of the polymeric structure. Our data establish that the histone-based mechanism of DNA compaction predates the nucleosome, illuminating the origin of the nucleosome.