title: DNA binding by proteins.
abstract: Study of proteins that recognize specific DNA sequences has yielded much information, but the field is still in its infancy. Already two major structural motifs have been discovered, the helix-turn-helix and zinc finger, and numerous examples of DNA-binding proteins containing either of them are known. The restriction enzyme Eco RI uses yet a different motif. Additional motifs are likely to be found as well. There is a growing understanding of some of the physical chemistry involved in protein-DNA binding, but much remains to be learned before it becomes possible to engineer a protein that binds to a specific DNA sequence.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Department of Biochemistry, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02254.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schleif
mesh_terms: D000596:Amino Acids / Q000378:metabolism; D001665:Binding Sites; D055598:Chemical Phenomena; D002621:Chemistry; D004247:DNA / Q000378:metabolism; D004262:DNA Restriction Enzymes / Q000378:metabolism; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D015246:Deoxyribonuclease EcoRI; D004563:Electrochemistry; D009696:Nucleic Acids / Q000378:metabolism; D011487:Protein Conformation; D015032:Zinc
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D009696:Nucleic Acids; D004247:DNA; D004262:DNA Restriction Enzymes; D015246:Deoxyribonuclease EcoRI; D015032:Zinc