What is the structure and function of a zinc finger protein motif?

What is the structure and function of a zinc finger protein motif?

Zinc finger proteins are among the most abundant proteins in eukaryotic genomes. Their functions are extraordinarily diverse and include DNA recognition, RNA packaging, transcriptional activation, regulation of apoptosis, protein folding and assembly, and lipid binding.

How do zinc finger proteins work?

The zinc-finger domain is one of the most frequently utilized DNA-binding motif found in eukaryotic transcriptional factors. The binding of a zinc-finger domain to its target site juxtaposes three base pairs on DNA to a few amino acids in the α-helix structure.

Are zinc finger proteins transcription factors?

Zinc finger proteins are the largest transcription factor family in human genome. The diverse combinations and functions of zinc finger motifs make zinc finger proteins versatile in biological processes, including development, differentiation, metabolism and autophagy.

How is a zinc ion involved in the stabilization of the zinc finger motif?

The zinc atom is simultaneously bound by the 2 cysteine and the 2 histidine side chains. DNA has a negatively-charged phosphate backbone. Therefore, the positively- charged arginine of the zinc finger can bind to DNA via an electrostatic interaction.

What is the structure of a zinc finger?

A zinc finger is a small protein structural motif that is characterized by the coordination of one or more zinc ions (Zn2+) in order to stabilize the fold. It was originally coined to describe the finger-like appearance of a hypothesized structure from the African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) transcription factor IIIA.

How are zinc fingers used in gene editing?

Zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs) are a class of engineered DNA-binding proteins that facilitate targeted editing of the genome by creating double-strand breaks in DNA at user-specified locations.

How are zinc fingers specific?

How are zinc fingers specific to DNA?

The zinc fingers recognize specific trinucleotide DNA sequences by insertion of several a-helices in the major groove of the DNA. The CCHH domains are organized in tandem, and the cooperative binding of a-helices contribute to the strength and specificity of the protein-nucleic acid interaction.

What is zinc finger technology?

What are the benefits of CRISPR-Cas9 versus TALENs or zinc finger?

Recognition of the DNA site in the CRISPR-Cas9 system is controlled by RNA–DNA interactions. This offers many advantages over ZFNs and TALENs, including easy design for any genomic targets, easy prediction regarding off-target sites, and the possibility of modifying several genomic sites simultaneously (multiplexing).

How can zinc finger domains be used to develop gene editing technologies?

Zinc finger domains can be engineered to target specific desired DNA sequences and this enables zinc-finger nucleases to target unique sequences within complex genomes. By taking advantage of endogenous DNA repair machinery, these reagents can be used to precisely alter the genomes of higher organisms.

How does zinc finger nucleases work?

Zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs) are artificial restriction enzymes generated by fusing a zinc finger DNA-binding domain to a DNA-cleavage domain. Zinc finger domains can be engineered to target specific desired DNA sequences and this enables zinc-finger nucleases to target unique sequences within complex genomes.

What is the difference between zinc finger nucleases and TALENs?

ZFN is a gene editing technique based on Zinc finger nucleases while TALEN is a gene editing technique based on fusion proteins composed of a bacterial TALE protein and Fok1 endonuclease, and CRISPR is a natural RNA based bacterial defence mechanism that is driven by two types of RNA and associated Cas proteins.