The general transcription factors of RNA polymerase II

• Published in: Genes & development Vol. 10; no. 21; pp. 2657 - 2683
• Main Authors: Orphanides, G, Lagrange, T, Reinberg, D
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.11.1996
• Subjects: Animals; RNA Polymerase II - metabolism; TATA Box; Transcription Factors - metabolism
• ISSN: 0890-9369; 1549-5477
• DOI: 10.1101/gad.10.21.2657

In recent years, tremendous experimental effort has led to the identification of each of the factors required for transcription in vitro from a variety of organisms. Amazingly, organisms as diverse as human, rat, Drosophila, and yeast use the same set of conserved proteins to initiate mRNA synthesis. These protein factors--collectively known as the General Transcription Factors (GTFs)--have since been purified to homogeneity from HeLa cells, rat liver, Drosophila, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and have been named TFIIA, TFIIB, TFIID, TFIIE, TFIIF, and TFIIH (where TF stands for transcription factor) according to their chromatographic elution profiles and order of discovery. This review focuses on the properties of the GTFs and on the role of each GTF in transcription. While we acknowledge that the stepwise model may not be the path by which GTFs assemble at a promoter in vivo, we use this model to highlight the interplay between GTFs that contributes to the formation of the complete preinitiation complex. We also review the mounting evidence for the existence of pol II holoenzymes and their roles in regulating transcription. Finally, we describe how regulatory factors target the GTFs to directly modulate the rate of transcription initiation.