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DNA Recognition by Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins

  • Chapter
Nucleic Acids and Molecular Biology

Part of the book series: Nucleic Acids and Molecular Biology ((NUCLEIC,volume 9))

Abstract

The helix-loop-helix proteins are characterized by a highly conserved 60-100 residue motif comprised of two amphipathic α-helices separated by a loop of variable length, and amino acid composition and sequence. These motifs dimerize by approximating the conserved hydrophobic faces of the α-helices, forming a left-handed, parallel, four-helix bundle. Baltimore and coworkers (Murre et al. 1989) first described conservation of this feature in a large number of eukaryotic transcription factors, and implicated it in dimerization and DNA binding. Subsequent work has confirmed their bold prediction and demonstrated that the helix-loop-helix motif is primarily responsible for dimerization. Most helix-loop-helix proteins possess a highly conserved basic region immediately N-terminal to the first helix (Prendergast and Ziff 1989), which mediates high-affinity, specific DNA binding (reviewed in Bexevanis and Vinson 1993). In addition, the second helix of many of these transcription factors is extended beyond the C-terminus of the fourhelix bundle, where a leucine heptad repeat or zipper forms a left-handed, coiled-coil dimer interface. Finally, some helix-loop-helix proteins lack the basic region (Benezra et al. 1990).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratories of Molecular Biophysics and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The Rockefeller University, 1230 York Avenue, New York, NY, 10021, USA

    A. R. Ferré-D’Amaré & S. K. Burley

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  1. A. R. Ferré-D’Amaré
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  2. S. K. Burley
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Max-Planck-Institut für Experimentelle Medizin, Hermann-Rein-Straße 3, 37075, Göttingen, Germany

    Fritz Eckstein

  2. Biochemistry Department, University of Dundee, Dundee, DD1 4HN, UK

    David M. J. Lilley

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© 1995 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Ferré-D’Amaré, A.R., Burley, S.K. (1995). DNA Recognition by Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins. In: Eckstein, F., Lilley, D.M.J. (eds) Nucleic Acids and Molecular Biology. Nucleic Acids and Molecular Biology, vol 9. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-79488-9_14

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-79488-9_14

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-79490-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-79488-9

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