Presence of histone H2B in Trypanosoma cruzi chromatin

The organization of chromatin in protists presents some characteristic features. In Trypanosoma cruzi, no condensation of chromatin into chromosomes is observed during cell division. A systematic characterization of histones should provide information on this peculiar behaviour. Histone H2B from this parasite was characterized by selective dissociation from chromatin in 0.8 M NaCl, by its elution pattern in narrow-bore reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography, by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and by partial sequencing of its amino terminal domain. This chromosomal protein differs from histone H2B of other species. The first 12 amino acids are missing which explains its lower molecular weight when compared to human histone H2B. Correspondingly, the amino terminal domain of T. cruzi histone H2B is 25-30% shorter than other histones H2B. Moreover, three out of four acetylation sites present in human histone H2B are missing in T. cruzi histone H2B. The differences in size and in acceptor sites for acetylation of T. cruzi histone H2B when compared to human histone H2B may represent a functional feature to consider for the understanding of the chromatin cycle of condensation in this parasite.