Zinc Finger And SCAN Domain Containing Protein 5A (ZSCAN5A)

ZSCAN5, Contains 5 C2H2-type zinc fingers. Contains 1 SCAN box domain. May be involved in transcriptional regulation. C2H2-type zinc fingers were the first class to be characterised. They contain a short beta hairpin and an alpha helix, where a single zinc atom is held in place by Cys(2)His(2) (C2H2) residues in a tetrahedral array. C2H2 Znf's can be divided into three groups based on the number and pattern of fingers: triple-C2H2, multiple-adjacent-C2H2, and separated paired-C2H2. C2H2 Znf's are the most common DNA-binding motifs found in eukaryotic transcription factors, and have also been identified in prokaryotes. Transcription factors usually contain several Znf's capable of making multiple contacts along the DNA, where the C2H2 Znf motifs recognise DNA sequences by binding to the major groove of DNA via a short alpha-helix in the Znf, the Znf spanning 3-4 bases of the DNA.