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Abstract
CTCF is an evolutionarily conserved zinc finger (ZF) phosphoprotein that binds through
combinatorial use of its 11 ZFs to approximately 50 bp target sites that have remarkable
sequence variation. Formation of different CTCF-DNA complexes, some of which are methylation-sensitive,
results in distinct functions, including gene activation, repression, silencing and
chromatin insulation. Disrupting the spectrum of target specificities by ZF mutations
or by abnormal selective methylation of targets is associated with cancer. CTCF emerges,
therefore, as a central player in networks linking expression domains with epigenetics
and cell growth regulation.