Nature communications
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Nature communications · Jun 2015
Direct observation of TALE protein dynamics reveals a two-state search mechanism.
Transcription activator-like effector (TALE) proteins are a class of programmable DNA-binding proteins for which the fundamental mechanisms governing the search process are not fully understood. Here we use single-molecule techniques to directly observe TALE search dynamics along DNA templates. ⋯ We also observe that TALE proteins exhibit two distinct modes of action during the search process-a search state and a recognition state-facilitated by different subdomains in monomeric TALE proteins. Using TALE truncation mutants, we further demonstrate that the N-terminal region of TALEs is required for the initial non-specific binding and subsequent rapid search along DNA, whereas the central repeat domain is required for transitioning into the site-specific recognition state.