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The Topology and Organization of Eukaryotic Chromatin

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Bacterial Chromatin

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Abstract

In all organisms DNA is maintained in a highly compacted state complexed with abundant basic proteins. The extent of this compaction can range from ∼1,000-fold in the bacterial nucleoid to ∼10,000-fold in eukaryotic metaphase chromosomes. In addition to the necessity for compaction the genetic specification function of DNA also requires that the appropriate encoded information be accessible for transcription. The dual requirements of compaction and selective accessibility imply that the complex of DNA and abundant basic proteins, defined here generally as chromatin, must possess a high degree of structural organisation and that the regulation of transcription at the level of the gene may involve substantial structural transitions. In this article we summarise the current understanding of the organisation of eukaryotic chromatin and discuss the extent to which the organisational principles are also apparent in prokaryotic chromatin.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Dr. Malcolm Buckle for incisive comments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fondation Pierre-Gilles de Gennes pour la Recherche, c/o LBPA, École Normale Supérieure de Cachan, 94235, Cachan, France

    Andrew Travers

  2. MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0QH, UK

    Andrew Travers

  3. Jacobs University, Campus Ring 1, D-28759, Bremen, Germany

    Georgi Muskhelishvili

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  1. Andrew Travers
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  2. Georgi Muskhelishvili
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Correspondence to Andrew Travers .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 55, 2333 CC, Leiden, Netherlands

    Remus T. Dame (Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences) (Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences)

  2. Division of Physics and Astronomy Section Physics of Complex Systems, VU University Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1081, 1081 HV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Remus T. Dame (Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences) (Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences)

  3. Department of Microbiology School of Genetics and Microbiology, University of Dublin Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland

    Charles J. Dorman

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Travers, A., Muskhelishvili, G. (2010). The Topology and Organization of Eukaryotic Chromatin. In: Dame, R.T., Dorman, C.J. (eds) Bacterial Chromatin. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3473-1_11

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