Anchoring Notch genetics and biochemistry: Structural analysis of the ankyrin domain sheds light on existing data

Notch signaling is important in development and in human disease. Notch receptors regulate transcription through direct interactions with several proteins at the promoter regions of target genes. To understand the mechanism of Notch signaling, numerous deletion and mutagenesis studies have been carried out to identify functional domains in Notch, but domain definition and their role during the assembly of the transcriptionally active complex remains controversial. Recently reported biophysical and structural studies of the Notch ANK domain permit us to reevaluate the existing domain assignments and their predicted functional role, thereby providing further insight into the mechanism of Notch signaling.