This book stems from an Advanced Study Institute on Chromo­ somal Proteins and Gene Expression that was held in Sitges, Spain, on September 17-26, 1984. It would be misleading to call this volume a conference proceedings, however. The ASI was not a conference, but a course with diverse activities, only one of which was a set of major presentations by the lecturers. Indeed, the concept of lecturer was intentionally obscured as we all learned from each other through shorter presentations by other participants and through seminars, poster sessions, and small group discussions. Furthermore, many participants found that exchanging ideas outside organized sessions was among the most rewarding aspects of the course. Some even claimed to have profitably probed the intricacies of nucleosome structure and transcriptional regulation while basking in the sun on the beachl Obviously, it is difficult to catch the flavor of such varied proceedings in a book. (I cannot confirm the incident on the beach, never having found time to set foot there. Such is the fate of the director of a meeting. ) The ASI was judged a success -- and enthusiastically so -­ by most participants. Not only did we deepen our understanding of our scientific field, we made new friends and learned about scientific and nonscientific aspects of life in other countries and about issues that transcend international boundaries in our complex world. We hope that this volume will be as successful as the course was.

Inhalt

Histone, Nucleosome, and Chromosome Structures.- Nucleosome Structure.- Resynthesis of Histone Peptide Bonds on a DNA Matrix.- How Does H1 Function in Chromatin?.- Structural Studies on the Second Order of Chromatin Organization.- Mitotic Chromosome Structure: An Update, December 1984.- Transcriptional Regulation and Chromatin Structure.- DNase I Hypersensitive Sites: A Structural Feature of Chromatin Associated with Gene Expression.- Promoter Elements of Eukaryotic Protein-Coding Genes.- Regulatory Elements in Steroid Hormone Inducible Genes: Structure and Evolution of DNA Sequences Recognized by Steroid Hormone Receptors.- Structure and Regulation of the Human Metallothionein Gene Family.- Expression and Chromatin Structure of the Alpha-Fetoprotein and Albumin Genes During Normal Development and Neoplasia.- Transcriptional and Post-Transcriptional Control of Histone Gene Expression.- Gene Expression and Interferon.- Chromosomal Proteins: Approaches to Structure and Function.- Z-DNA and its Binding Proteins.- Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of DNA Replication in Yeast.- The Structures and Functions of the Low Molecular Weight HMG Proteins.- Post-Translational Modification of the Low Molecular Weight HMG Chromosomal Proteins.- Structure and Function in the HMG-1 Family of Chromosomal Proteins.- Stacking Interactions: The Key Mechanism for Binding of Proteins to Single-Stranded Regions of Native and Damaged Nucleic Acids?.- Protamines and Spermiogenesis.- Organization and Evolution of the Protamine Genes of Salmonid Fishes.- Chromatin Proteins and Chromatin Structure in Spermatogenesis.- Diversity of Sperm Basic Chromosomal Proteins in the Vertebrates: A Phylogenetic Point of View.- Contributors.