The creation of the artificial RING finger from the cross-brace zinc finger by α-helical region substitution

The creation of the artificial RING finger as ubiquitin-ligating enzyme (E3) has been demonstrated. In this study, by the α-helical region substitution between the EL5 RING finger and the Williams–Beuren syndrome transcription factor (WSTF) PHD finger, the artificial E3 (WSTF PHD_RING finger) was newly created. The experiments of the chemical modification of residues Cys and the circular dichroism spectra revealed that the WSTF PHD_RING finger binds two zinc atoms and adopts the zinc-dependent ordered-structure. In the substrate-independent ubiquitination assay, the WSTF PHD_RING finger functions as E3 and was poly- or mono-ubiquitinated. The present strategy is very simple and convenient, and consequently it might be widely applicable to the creation of various artificial E3 RING fingers with the specific ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme (E2)-binding capability.