Question

The number of polypeptide chains in a core nucleosome is ______.

Hint:

Each nucleosome = 8 histone chains + ~146 bp DNA wrapped around them.

Answer 1

Correct Answer: 8

Step 1: Recall nucleosome structure.
A nucleosome core consists of histone proteins around which DNA is wrapped.
Step 2: Histone composition.
The histone octamer contains: \[ 2 \times (\text{H2A, H2B, H3, H4}) = 8~\text{histone polypeptide chains} \] Step 3: Conclusion.
\[ \boxed{\text{Number of polypeptide chains} = 8} \]