Development of new supramolecular tools for studying the Histone Code
Date
2012-06-14
Authors
Minaker, Samuel Anthony
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Abstract
The covalent modifications to the histone 2A, 2B, 3, and 4 N-terminal tails that affect gene expression have been deemed the “Histone Code.” Mis-regulation of these signalling pathways is of great interest as are important in human disease. A variety of peptides containing post-translationally modified histone 3 and 4 sequences were read using a supramolecular sensor array approach, where two or three sensors gave a unique response for each analyte when compared to others. These sequences were chosen to determine what type of modifications could be read (phosphorylation, acetylation, methylation) and if this type of array would be suitable for reading analytes on which antibodies—the leading technology—typically perform poorly. It was found that three sensors, which operate in neutral aqueous solution, were able to discriminate 16 different histone analytes. Additionally, it was shown that this array could report simultaneously on both concentration and the identities of histone analytes.
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Keywords
Supramolecular, Sensors, Sensor Array, Calixarene, Histone Code, Epigenetics