DNA Accessibility by MNase Digestions

Abstract

Micrococcal nuclease (MNase) digestion of chromatin cuts linker DNA between neighboring nucleosomes and in this way generates mononucleosomes. The protected fragments can then be analyzed by genome-wide sequencing techniques or by quantitative PCR to obtain information about the positions of nucleosomes in the chromatin. Nucleosomes are differentially sensitive to MNase digestion, which means that titrations of MNase should be performed to obtain a comprehensive map of the nucleosome positions of a chromatin region or genome.

Keywords: Chromatin accessibility; MNase digestion; Nucleosome position.