The relative molar ratios of each of the histone classes and protein A24 have been determined in nuclei, chromatin, and different electrophoretic forms of mono- and dinucleosomes of cultured mouse cells. For this purpose, [3H]lysine- and [14C]arginine-labeled cells were used for sample preparations, and stoichiometries were estimated from protein radioactivity profiles and known amino acid comp...

Histone H1 preferentially binds and aggregates scaffold-associated regions (SARs) via the numerous homopolymeric oligo(dA).oligo(dT) tracts present within these sequences. Here we show that the mammalian somatic subtypes H1a,b,c,d,e and H1 degrees and the male germline-specific subtype H1t, all preferentially bind to the Drosophila histone SAR. Experiments with the isolated domains show that wh...

Chromatin structure and activity can be modified through ATP-dependent repositioning of nucleosomes and posttranslational modifications of core histone tails within nucleosome core particles and by deposition of linker histones into the oligonucleosome fiber. The linker histone H1 is essential in metazoans. It has a profound effect on organization of chromatin into higher-order structures and o...

At least six histone H1 variants exist in somatic mammalian cells that bind to the linker DNA and stabilize the nucleosome particle contributing to higher order chromatin compaction. In addition, H1 seems to be actively involved in the regulation of gene expression. However, it is not well known whether the different variants have distinct roles or if they regulate specific promoters. We have e...