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Deacetylation

Meaning

Deacetylation is a fundamental biochemical reaction involving the removal of an acetyl functional group (CH₃CO) from a molecule, typically a protein or histone. In the context of epigenetics, the deacetylation of histone proteins is a critical regulatory mechanism that leads to the condensation of chromatin structure. This condensed state generally results in the repression or silencing of gene transcription, effectively controlling which genes are expressed.