%0 Journal Article
%T The Human Proteins MBD5 and MBD6 Associate with Heterochromatin but They Do Not Bind Methylated DNA
%A Sophie Laget
%A Michael Joulie
%A Florent Le Masson
%A Nobuhiro Sasai
%A Elisabeth Christians
%A Sriharsa Pradhan
%A Richard J. Roberts
%A Pierre-Antoine Defossez
%J PLOS ONE
%D 2012
%I Public Library of Science (PLoS)
%R 10.1371/journal.pone.0011982
%X MBD5 and MBD6 are two uncharacterized mammalian proteins that contain a putative Methyl-Binding Domain (MBD). In the proteins MBD1, MBD2, MBD4, and MeCP2, this domain allows the specific recognition of DNA containing methylated cytosine; as a consequence, the proteins serve as interpreters of DNA methylation, an essential epigenetic mark. It is unknown whether MBD5 or MBD6 also bind methylated DNA; this question has interest for basic research, but also practical consequences for human health, as MBD5 deletions are the likely cause of certain cases of mental retardation.
%U http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0011982