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Reversing histone methylation

Nature volume 436, pages 1103–1106 (2005)Cite this article

Abstract

Histones package DNA, and post-translational modifications of histones can regulate access to DNA. Until recently, histone methylation—unlike all other histone modifications—was considered a permanent mark. The discovery of enzymes that reverse the methylation of lysines and arginines challenges our current thinking on the unique nature of histone methylation, and substantially increases the complexity of histone modification pathways.

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Figure 1: Summary of the proteins that bind methylated histones.
Figure 2: Reaction mechanisms for methyl group removal.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Gurdon Institute and Department of Pathology, Tennis Court Road, CB2 1QN, Cambridge, UK

    Andrew J. Bannister & Tony Kouzarides

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  1. Andrew J. Bannister
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  2. Tony Kouzarides
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Correspondence to Tony Kouzarides.

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Bannister, A., Kouzarides, T. Reversing histone methylation. Nature 436, 1103–1106 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04048

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