Poly(dA:dT) tracts: major determinants of nucleosome organization.
Homopolymeric stretches of deoxyadenosine nucleotides (A's) on one strand of double-stranded DNA, referred to as poly(dA:dT) tracts or A-tracts, are overabundant in eukaryotic genomes. They have unusual structural, dynamic, and mechanical properties, and may resist sharp bending. Such unusual material properties, together with their overabundance in eukaryotes, raised the possibility that poly(dA:dT) tracts might function in eukaryotes to influence the organization of nucleosomes at many genomic regions. Recent genome-wide studies strongly confirm these ideas and suggest that these tracts play major roles in chromatin organization and genome function. Here we review what is known about poly(dA:dT) tracts and how they work.
Segal
Eran
E
Department of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100, Israel. eran.segal@weizmann.ac.il
Widom
Jonathan
J
D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D009707:Nucleosomes / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D011067:Poly dA-dT / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics
D009707:Nucleosomes; D011067:Poly dA-dT; D004247:DNA