title: A global transcription cofactor bound to juxtaposed strands of unwound DNA.
abstract: The 1.74-A crystal structure of the human transcription cofactor PC4 in complex with a single-stranded 20-mer oligonucleotide reveals how symmetry-related beta-surfaces of the protein homodimer interact with juxtaposed 5-nucleotide DNA regions running in opposite directions. The structure explains high-affinity binding of PC4 to the complementary strands of unwinding duplex DNA, and it suggests the cofactor may have a role in relaxing negative supercoils or exposing unpaired bases for sequence-specific recognition by other biomolecules.
authors.affiliation: Département de Biologie et Génomique Structurales, Institut de Génétique et de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, B.P. 10142, 67404 Illkirch Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Sebastiaan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Werten
authors.forename: Dino
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Moras
mesh_terms: D001665:Binding Sites; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D004277:DNA, Single-Stranded / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D019281:Dimerization; D006801:Humans; D008958:Models, Molecular; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D020836:Protein Structure, Quaternary; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D004277:DNA, Single-Stranded; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; C509201:SUB1 protein, human; D014157:Transcription Factors