Histone protein (None)

Histone proteins are a highly conserved family of basic nuclear proteins responsible for organizing eukaryotic DNA into structural units called nucleosomes. There are five major types—core histones (H2A, H2B, H3, and H4) form an octameric complex around which ~147 base pairs of DNA wrap to create the nucleosome core particle; linker histones such as the H1 family bind adjacent nucleosomes together into higher-order chromatin structures. Their N-terminal tails undergo extensive post-translational modifications—including methylation and acetylation—that regulate access to genetic information by controlling chromatin compaction state. These dynamic changes play critical roles in processes like transcriptional regulation, cell cycle progression/condensation during mitosis/meiosis/DNA repair/spermatogenesis. Aberrant modification patterns or mutations affecting these processes have been implicated in cancer development and other diseases involving genome instability.

Other names

HistonesCore histones (H2A, H2B, H3, and H4)Linker histones (H1 family)Chromatin proteins

Drugs do not target the core protein directly but modulate its function by altering post-translational modifications such as acetylation/methylation/phosphorylation to affect gene expression patterns.