Nucleosome allostery in pioneer transcription factor binding.

ABSTRACT: While recent experiments revealed that some pioneer transcription factors (TFs) can bind to their target DNA sequences inside a nucleosome, the binding dynamics of their target recognitions are poorly understood. Here we used the latest coarse-grained models and molecular dynamics simulations to study the nucleosome-binding procedure of the two pioneer TFs, Sox2 and Oct4. In the simulations for a strongly positioning nucleosome, Sox2 selected its target DNA sequence only when the target was exposed. Otherwise, Sox2 entropically bound to the dyad region nonspecifically. In contrast, Oct4 plastically bound on the nucleosome mainly in two ways. First, the two POU domains of Oct4 separately bound to the two parallel gyres of the nucleosomal DNA, supporting the previous experimental results of

SUBMITTER: Tan C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7456188 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature