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Updated: Aug 11, 2026

Assembly of Nucleosomal Arrays from Recombinant Core Histones and Nucleosome Positioning DNA
Published on: September 10, 2013
Patterning chromatin: form and function for H2A.Z variant nucleosomes
Ryan M Raisner1, Hiten D Madhani
1Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, 600 16th Street, San Francisco, CA 94143-2240, USA.
Abstract:
Although many histone variants are specific to higher eukaryotes, the H2A variant H2A.Z has been conserved during eukaryotic evolution. Genetic studies have demonstrated roles for H2A.Z in antagonizing gene-silencing, chromosome stability and gene activation. Biochemical work has identified a conserved chromatin-remodeling complex responsible for H2A.Z deposition. Recent studies have shown that two H2A.Z nucleosomes flank a nucleosome-free region containing the transcription initiation site in promoters of both active and inactive genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This chromatin pattern is generated through the action of a DNA deposition signal and a specific pattern of histone tail acetylation.
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