Chromodomain

Chromodomains are evolutionarily conserved protein domains found across a wide variety of eukaryotic species. Some chromodomain-containing genes have multiple alternative splicing isoforms that omit the chromodomain entirely. They are prominent in chromatin-associated proteins, such as the Polycomb-group (PcG) proteins and Heterochromatin Protein 1 (HP1), where they function as methylated lysine readers involved in gene regulation and chromatin remodeling, facilitating both gene silencing and activation by modifying chromatin structure. Chromodomain-containing proteins also bind methylated histones and appear in the RNA-induced transcriptional silencing complex.