Members of the p300/CBP family are transcriptional activators that integrate signals controlling a wide variety of cellular processes, including cell proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis. In one of two Signal Transduction and Cellular Organization Commentaries in this issue, Ho Man Chan and Nicholas La Thangue review our understanding of the structure, function and regulation of this interesting family of proteins. The p300/CBP proteins interact with general transcription factors (e.g. TBP and TFIIB) and transcriptional regulators (e.g. JUN and CREB), forming ‘bridges’ that connect sequence-specific, regulatable transcription factors to the basal transcriptional apparatus. Furthermore, they underpin multicomponent transcriptional regulatory complexes by acting as scaffolds for recruitment of transcription factors and architectural proteins such as HMG proteins. An additional feature of p300/CBP proteins is their histone acetyl transferase (HAT) activity, which can regulate both chromatin organization (by targeting histones) and the activity of transcription factors such as p53. Since p300/CBP genes are mutated...

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