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Helix Interactions in a Leucine Zipper In an alpha-helix the backbone is somewhat packed against itself. In the helix interactions of a leucine zipper, the leucines reach out to contact other leucines in the opposite helix. The geometry of a leucine sidechain facilitates this interaction. The leucines of the red helix are colored pink. The leucines of the blue helix are colored light blue. You can see how they pack against each other.
DNA recognition by GAL4: structure of a protein-DNA complex. (PubMed) 1d66 (PDB)
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