Gene-specific requirement of RNA polymerase II CTD phosphorylation.

Autor: Drogat J; Namur Research College-NARC, Rue de Bruxelles 61, 5000 Namur, Belgium., Hermand D
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Molecular microbiology [Mol Microbiol] 2012 Jun; Vol. 84 (6), pp. 995-1004. Date of Electronic Publication: 2012 May 04.
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2012.08071.x
Abstrakt: The largest subunit of RNA polymerase II, Rpb1, contains an unusual C-terminal domain (CTD) composed of numerous repeats of the YSPTSPS consensus sequence. This sequence is the target of post-translational modifications such as phosphorylation, glycosylation, methylation and transitions between stereoisomeric states, resulting in a vast combinatorial potential referred to as the CTD code. In order to gain insight into the biological significance of this code, several studies recently reported the genome-wide distribution of some of these modified polymerases and associated factors in either fission yeast (Schizosaccharomyces pombe) or budding yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). The resulting occupancy maps reveal that a general RNA polymerase II transcription complex exists and undergoes uniform transitions from initiation to elongation to termination. Nevertheless, CTD phosphorylation dynamics result in a gene-specific effect on mRNA expression. In this review, we focus on the gene-specific requirement of CTD phosphorylation and discuss in more detail the case of serine 2 phosphorylation (S2P) within the CTD, a modification that is dispensable for general transcription in fission yeast but strongly affects transcription reprogramming and cell differentiation in response to environmental cues. The recent discovery of Cdk12 as a genuine CTD S2 kinase and its requirement for gene-specific expression are discussed in the wider context of metazoa.
(© 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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