Single-molecule studies of RNAPII elongation
Elongation, the transcriptional phase in which RNA polymerase (RNAP) moves processively along a DNA template, occurs via a fundamental enzymatic mechanism that is thought to be universally conserved among multi-subunit polymerases in all kingdoms of life. Beyond this basic mechanism, a multitude of...
Saved in:
Published in | Biochimica et biophysica acta Vol. 1829; no. 1; pp. 29 - 38 |
---|---|
Main Authors | , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Netherlands
Elsevier B.V
01.01.2013
|
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
Cover
Loading…
Summary: | Elongation, the transcriptional phase in which RNA polymerase (RNAP) moves processively along a DNA template, occurs via a fundamental enzymatic mechanism that is thought to be universally conserved among multi-subunit polymerases in all kingdoms of life. Beyond this basic mechanism, a multitude of processes are integrated into transcript elongation, among them fidelity control, gene regulatory interactions involving elongation factors, RNA splicing or processing factors, and regulatory mechanisms associated with chromatin structure. Many kinetic and molecular details of the mechanism of the nucleotide addition cycle and its regulation, however, remain elusive and generate continued interest and even controversy. Recently, single-molecule approaches have emerged as powerful tools for the study of transcription in eukaryotic organisms. Here, we review recent progress and discuss some of the unresolved questions and ongoing debates, while anticipating future developments in the field. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: RNA Polymerase II Transcript Elongation.
► Transcription by eukaryotic RNA polymerase using Single-molecule approaches is reviewed. ► Single-molecule fluorescence and optical trapping techniques have been especially informative. ► Prospects for future studies are examined and discussed. |
---|---|
Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-3 content type line 23 ObjectType-Review-1 These authors contributed equally to this work. |
ISSN: | 1874-9399 0006-3002 1876-4320 |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.bbagrm.2012.08.006 |