Methyl-CpG-binding domain
| MBD | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CDD | cd00122 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
The Methyl-CpG-binding domain (MBD) in
MeCP2 showed that the MBD could protect a 12 nucleotide region surrounding a methyl CpG pair.[1]
DNA methylation at CpG dinucleotides, the most common DNA modification in eukaryotes, has been associated with various phenomena such as alterations in chromatin structure,
The MBD
hydrophobic faces tightly packed against each other. The beta sheet is composed of two long inner strands (beta2 and beta3) sandwiched by two shorter outer strands (beta1 and beta4).[5]
The structure of the MBD domain bound to methylated DNA has been solved (PDB: 3C2I). It recognizes the hydration of the major groove at methylated sites.[6]