DNA binding of histone H1 is modulated by nucleotides

Histone H1 acts as a general repressor of transcription in eukaryotes by organizing nucleosomes into inaccessible condensed forms of chromatin. The capability of H1 to bind to DNA with some sequence specificity is likely to be critical in the control of these processes. We show here that ATP and several other nucleotides, including non-hydrolyzable derivatives, can inhibit DNA binding of H1. The results also show that ATP differentially affects binding of H1 to DNA in a fashion enhancing nucleotide sequence specificity of the binding. The study suggests a novel mechanism of modulation of H1 activity that has important implications for the role of H1 as a transcriptional regulator.