What are Zinc Finger Proteins (ZFPs)?

Function

ZFPs are found commonly in nature as a class of special transcription factors that bind to DNA, thus regulating gene expression.

Structure

ZFPs consist of smaller subunits called "fingers" which each contain a zinc finger binding helix that binds to unique DNA sequences. These fingers are linear and linked together by the "zinc finger backbone", a series of approximately 21 amino acids.

Cis2His2 ZFPs have three main structural components: 1) Zinc finger binding helix 2) Linker region 3) Zinc ion that is coordinated by two cysteine residues and two histidine residues.