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Usually, DNA condensation is defined as "the collapse of extended DNA chains into compact, orderly particles containing only one or a few molecules". [3] This definition applies to many situations in vitro and is also close to the definition of DNA condensation in bacteria as "adoption of relatively concentrated, compact state occupying a ...
In nature, DNA can form three structures, A-, B-, and Z-DNA. A- and B-DNA are very similar, forming right-handed helices, whereas Z-DNA is a left-handed helix with a zig-zag phosphate backbone. Z-DNA is thought to play a specific role in chromatin structure and transcription because of the properties of the junction between B- and Z-DNA.
However, DNA is tightly packaged in the nucleus with the help of packaging proteins, chiefly histone proteins to form repeating units of nucleosomes which further bundle together to form condensed chromatin structure. Such condensed structure occludes many DNA regulatory regions, not allowing them to interact with transcriptional machinery ...
The packaging of DNA into nucleosomes causes a 10 nanometer fibre which may further condense up to 30 nm fibres [33] Most of the euchromatin in interphase nuclei appears to be in the form of 30-nm fibers. [33] Chromatin structure is the more decondensed state, i.e. the 10-nm conformation allows transcription. [33] Heterochromatin vs. euchromatin
It has been proposed that condensin I anchors DNA between Ycg1-Brn1 subunits [31] and pulls DNA asymmetrically to form large loops. Moreover, it has been shown that condensin complexes can traverse each other, forming dynamic loop structures and changing their sizes. [44] It is unknown how condensins might act on nucleosomal DNA.
Heterochromatin is a tightly packed form of DNA or condensed DNA, which comes in multiple varieties. These varieties lie on a continuum between the two extremes of constitutive heterochromatin and facultative heterochromatin. Both play a role in the expression of genes.
When it comes to insects' DNA, humans have a bit less in common. For example, fruit flies share 61 percent of disease-causing genes with humans, which was important when NASA studied the bugs to ...
DNA quaternary structure is used to refer to the binding of DNA to histones to form nucleosomes, and then their organisation into higher-order chromatin fibres. [2] The quaternary structure of DNA strongly affects how accessible the DNA sequence is to the transcription machinery for expression of genes. DNA quaternary structure varies over time ...