Deacetylation of histones is required for gene regulation and cell cycle progression and the mediators, the histone deacetylases, are being vigorously pursued as drug targets for cancer chemotherapy. The deacetylases are also potential drug targets against infectious diseases and genome sequencing revealed proteins of this class in each of three kinetoplastid parasites. These enzymes are now being characterised and assessed for chemotherapeutic potential.
