Zinc Finger Protein 593 (ZNF593)

ZNF593, a protein identified in a functional study as a negative modulator of the DNA-binding activity of the Oct-2 transcription factor. ZNF593 contains a classic C(2)H(2) zinc finger domain flanked by about 40 disordered residues on each terminus. Although the protein contains a high degree of intrinsic disorder, the structure of the zinc finger domain was resolved by NMR spectroscopy without a need for N- or C-terminal truncations. The structural topology of ZNF593 is similar to a fragment of the double-stranded RNA-binding protein Zfa and the C-terminal zinc finger of MBP-1, a human enhancer binding protein. The structure presented here will provide a guide for future functional studies of how ZNF593 negatively modulates the DNA-binding activity of Oct-2, a POU domain-containing transcription factor.