HDAC1 & HDAC2 are in the first class of HDACs are most closely related to one another. By analyzing the overall sequences of both HDACs, their similarity was found to be approximately 82% homologous. These enzymes have been found to be inactive when isolated which led to the conclusion that they must be incorporated with cofactors in order to activate their deacetylase abilities. There are three major protein complexes that HDAC 1 & 2 may incorporate themselves into. These complexes include Sin3 (named after its characteristic protein mSin3A), Nucleosome Remodelling and Deacetylating complex (NuRD), and Co-REST. The Sin3 complex and the NuRD complex both contain HDACs 1 and 2, the Rb-associated protein 48 (RbAp48) and RbAp46 which make up the core of each complex. Other complexes may be needed though in order to initiate the maximum amount of available activity possible. HDACs 1 and 2 can also bind directly to DNA binding proteins such as Yin and Yang 1 (YY1), Rb binding protein 1 and Sp1. HDACs 1 and 2 have been found to express regulatory roles in key cell cycle genes including p21.
Activity of these HDACs can be affected by phosphorylation. An increased amount of phosphorylation (hyperphosphorylation) leads to increased deacetylase activity, but degrades complex formation between HDACs 1 and 2 and between HDAC1 and mSin3A/YY1. A lower than normal amount of phosphorylation (hypophosphorylation) leads to a decrease in the amount of deacetylase activity, but increases the amount of complex formation. Mutation studies found that major phosphorylation happens at residues Ser and Ser. Indeed, when these residues were mutated, a drastic reduction was seen in the amount of deacetylation activity. This difference in the state of phosphorylation is a way of keeping an optimal level of phosphorylation to ensure there is no over or under expression of deacetylation. HDACs 1 and 2 have been found only exclusively in the nucleus. In HDAC1 knockout (KO) mice, mice were found to die during embryogenesis and showed a drastic reduction in the production but increased expression of Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitors (CDKIs) p21 and p27. Not even upregulation of the other Class I HDACs could compensate for the loss of HDAC1. This inability to recover from HDAC1 KO leads researchers to believe that there are both functional uniqueness to each HDAC as well as regulatory cross-talk between factors.