CTCF

CTCF, or CCCTC binding factor, has alternative names including 11-zinc finger protein and CTCFL paralog. CTCF is a multifunctional transcription factor with 11 highly conserved zinc finger domains that can bind to DNA and function, such as mediating cohesin recruitment, participating in X chromosome inactivation, heterochromatin boundary formation, V(D)J recombination, RNA splicing, and apoptosis. CTCF binds to chromatin by recognizing specific DNA sequence motifs and acts as an anchor to fix chromatin loops, which is fundamental for constructing the three-dimensional structure of chromatin. CTCF plays a crucial role in cell growth and proliferation, phylogenetics, and tumor development. The absence of CTCF leads to various cellular differentiation and tissue developmental defects, including impaired memory and learning abilities, cardiovascular development, blood cell differentiation, and limb development. CTCF establishes a molecular mechanism by which cell lineage-specific chromatin higher-order structures regulate the expression of genes that determine cell fate, playing a key role in multiple biological processes.