What constitutes a nucleosome?

A nucleosome is defined as a structural unit of chromatin, which consists of a segment of DNA that is wrapped around a core of eight histone proteins. This arrangement plays a crucial role in the organization of DNA within the cell nucleus, allowing for the compaction of DNA so that it can fit within the confines of the nucleus while still being accessible for processes like transcription and replication. The positive charge of the histone proteins facilitates the binding to the negatively charged DNA, creating this essential structure which serves as a fundamental component of eukaryotic cells. The nucleosome is often described in the context of the "beads on a string" model of chromatin architecture, where the "beads" are the nucleosomes and the "string" is the linker DNA between them.