HBV HBx protein masks epigenetic reader Spindlin1 via an inter-molecular zinc finger to subvert transcriptional control
Anne K. Schütz
Nature Communications, Published online: 25 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41467-026-72986-5 Combining NMR spectroscopy, AlphaFold modelling and biolayer interferometry, hepatitis B virus protein X (HBx) is shown to mask human Spindlin1 through a zinc-finger mediated interaction, blocking histone binding and altering transcriptional control.