The primary structure of protamine P1, the protamine used for packaging DNA in sperm cells, in placental mammals is usually 49 or 50 amino acids long. This sequence is divided into three separate domains: an arginine-rich domain for DNA binding flanked by shorter peptide sequences containing mostly cysteine residues. The arginine-rich domain consists of 3-11 arginine residues and is conserved between fish protamine and mammalian protamine 1 sequences at about 60-80% sequence identity.[1] After translation, the protamine P1 structure is immediately phosphorylated at all three of the above-mentioned domains.