High impact information on h2B

• The N-terminus of histone H2B, but not that of histone H3 or its phosphorylation, is essential for chromosome condensation [1].
• Importantly, the addition to the extract of particles containing only intact histone H2B strongly interfered with chromosome formation while such an effect was not observed with particles lacking the N-terminal tail of H2B [1].
• The ability of a consensus octamer motif to stimulate transcription of a histone H2B promoter in frog oocytes suggests that oocytes contain a transcriptionally active octamer-binding protein(s) [2].
• An octamer motif present in a conserved histone H2B-specific promoter element is required for S-phase-specific transcription of mammalian histone H2B genes in cultured cells [3].
• Moreover, Delta N-cyclin A2-Cdk2 has an expanded substrate specificity and can phosphorylate histone H2B at Ser-32, which may facilitate DNA cleavage [4].

Biological context of h2B

• Using activated Xenopus egg extracts, we previously reported that the cell cycle arrest induced by oncogenic Ras correlates with the activation of a 96 kDa protein that phosphorylates histone h2b in vitro [5].

Anatomical context of h2B

• In oocytes and embryos up to the tailbud stage, four types of mRNAs complementary to histone H2B DNA and two complementary to histone H4 DNA can be discriminated by their different electrophoretic mobilities on polyacrylamide gels [6].
• After fusion of mouse myeloma cells (line Sp2/0 A914) with spleen cells from one of these mice, anti-Ro(SS-A) monoclonals were not obtained, but, instead, two IgM producing hybridomas reactive with histone H1 and one with histone H2B [7].
• Histone H2B variants from the erythrocytes of an amphibian, a reptile and a bird [8].

Associations of h2B with chemical compounds

• We find that the suppression of the histone H1 kinase activity of p34cdc2 by oncogenic Ras correlates with a simultaneous stimulation of a histone H2b serine kinase activity [9].

Regulatory relationships of h2B

• Oncogenic ras stimulates a 96-kDa histone H2b kinase activity in activated Xenopus egg extracts. Correlation with the suppression of p34cdc2 kinase [9].

Analytical, diagnostic and therapeutic context of h2B

• We have defined by site-directed mutagenesis individual regulatory sequences and characterized DNA-binding proteins required for histone H2B gene transcription in injected oocytes [10].

References