Biomaterial Database

Zinc-finger proteins: the classical zinc finger emerges in contemporary plant science. 1999

H Takatsuji

Laboratory of Developmental Biology, National Institute of Agrobiological Resources, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan.

TFIIIA-type zinc fingers have been found in a number of eucaryotic transcription factors as DNA-binding motifs. In plants, as many as 30 proteins have been reported that have either one, two, three or four zinc fingers. Plant zinc-finger proteins are characterized by long spacers of diverse lengths between adjacent fingers and a highly conserved sequence, QALGGH, located within a putative DNA-contacting surface of each finger. In vitro DNA-binding experiments with two-fingered proteins of petunia have revealed that these proteins bind to target DNA sequences in a manner that is distinctive from that of their animal counterparts: (1) they specifically recognize the spacing between two core sites in target DNA, (2) they have a unique base-determinant position. Regulatory functions have been assigned to some of the TFIIIA-type zinc finger proteins in Arabidopsis, petunia and chinese cabbage. SUPERMAN, AtZFP1, PetSPL3 and BcZFP1 have been implicated in the developmental regulation of various floral and vegetative organs, presumably through the control of cell division and/or expansion in particular cell types. Several anther-specific zinc-finger proteins in petunia are presumed to be involved in the regulation of gametogenesis in both reproductive and non-reproductive tissues of anther. STZ and ZPT2-2 are implicated in the response of plants to or tolerance for various stresses.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D010940	Plant Proteins	Proteins found in plants (flowers, herbs, shrubs, trees, etc.). The concept does not include proteins found in vegetables for which PLANT PROTEINS, DIETARY is available.	Plant Protein,Protein, Plant,Proteins, Plant
D011487	Protein Conformation	The characteristic 3-dimensional shape of a protein, including the secondary, supersecondary (motifs), tertiary (domains) and quaternary structure of the peptide chain. PROTEIN STRUCTURE, QUATERNARY describes the conformation assumed by multimeric proteins (aggregates of more than one polypeptide chain).	Conformation, Protein,Conformations, Protein,Protein Conformations
D004268	DNA-Binding Proteins	Proteins which bind to DNA. The family includes proteins which bind to both double- and single-stranded DNA and also includes specific DNA binding proteins in serum which can be used as markers for malignant diseases.	DNA Helix Destabilizing Proteins,DNA-Binding Protein,Single-Stranded DNA Binding Proteins,DNA Binding Protein,DNA Single-Stranded Binding Protein,SS DNA BP,Single-Stranded DNA-Binding Protein,Binding Protein, DNA,DNA Binding Proteins,DNA Single Stranded Binding Protein,DNA-Binding Protein, Single-Stranded,Protein, DNA-Binding,Single Stranded DNA Binding Protein,Single Stranded DNA Binding Proteins
D016335	Zinc Fingers	Motifs in DNA- and RNA-binding proteins whose amino acids are folded into a single structural unit around a zinc atom. In the classic zinc finger, one zinc atom is bound to two cysteines and two histidines. In between the cysteines and histidines are 12 residues which form a DNA binding fingertip. By variations in the composition of the sequences in the fingertip and the number and spacing of tandem repeats of the motif, zinc fingers can form a large number of different sequence specific binding sites.	Zinc Finger DNA-Binding Domains,Zinc Finger Motifs,Finger, Zinc,Fingers, Zinc,Motif, Zinc Finger,Motifs, Zinc Finger,Zinc Finger,Zinc Finger DNA Binding Domains,Zinc Finger Motif
D018506	Gene Expression Regulation, Plant	Any of the processes by which nuclear, cytoplasmic, or intercellular factors influence the differential control of gene action in plants.	Plant Gene Expression Regulation,Regulation of Gene Expression, Plant,Regulation, Gene Expression, Plant