The THAP-type zinc finger (consensus: C-x(2,4)-C-x(35,50)-C-x(2)-H) is an ~90-residue domain restricted to animals, which is shared between the THAP family of cellular DNA-binding proteins, and transposases from mobile genomic parasites [ PUBMED:12575992 PUBMED:12717420 … expand

The THAP-type zinc finger (consensus: C-x(2,4)-C-x(35,50)-C-x(2)-H) is an ~90-residue domain restricted to animals, which is shared between the THAP family of cellular DNA-binding proteins, and transposases from mobile genomic parasites [ PUBMED:12575992 PUBMED:12717420 ]. THAP1, the prototype of the THAP family, possesses zinc-dependent sequence-specific DNA binding activity and recognizes a consensus DNA target sequence of 11 nucleotides [ PUBMED:15863623 ]. The THAP-type zinc finger can be found in one or more copies and can be associated with other domains, such as the C2H2-type zinc finger.

The structure of the THAP-type zinc finger reveals the presence between the C2CH zinc coordinating residues of a short antiparallel β-sheet interspersed by a long loop-helix-loop insertion. This loop-helix-loop motif has been shown to be essential for the identification of a number of critical residues for DNA recognition [ PUBMED:18073205 ].