A Solid-Phase Approach for the Analysis of Reconstituted Chromatin

The value of a solid support was recognized early in history by the ancient Greek engineer Archimedes who, amazed by the power of the leverage machines that he invented, exclaimed that he could even move the entire planet had he only a suitable solid support to rely on. In biochemistry, sophisticated multistep experimental procedures require that a substrate be purified and processed through a sequence of reactions under different optimal conditions. Solid-phase techniques are invaluable because they allow instant and quantitative purification of reaction intermediates and readjustment of new reaction conditions. Here we describe a method for chromatin reconstitution on a solid support and present how solid-phase chromatin can be analyzed or prepared as a substrate in subsequent reactions.