scholarly journals The role of XPB/Ssl2 dsDNA translocation processivity in transcription-start-site scanning

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric J. Tomko ◽  
Olivia Luyties ◽  
Jenna K. Rimel ◽  
Chi-Lin Tsai ◽  
Jill O. Fuss ◽  
...  

AbstractThe general transcription factor TFIIH contains three ATP-dependent catalytic activities. TFIIH functions in nucleotide excision repair primarily as a DNA helicase and in Pol II transcription initiation as a dsDNA translocase and protein kinase. During initiation, the XPB/Ssl2 subunit of TFIIH couples ATP hydrolysis to dsDNA translocation facilitating promoter opening and the kinase module phosphorylates the C-terminal domain to facilitate the transition to elongation. These functions are conserved between metazoans and yeast; however, yeast TFIIH also drives transcription start-site scanning in which Pol II scans downstream DNA to locate productive start-sites. The ten-subunit holo-TFIIH from S. cerevisiae has a processive dsDNA translocase activity required for scanning and a structural role in scanning has been ascribed to the three-subunit TFIIH kinase module. Here, we assess the dsDNA translocase activity of ten-subunit holo- and core-TFIIH complexes (i.e. seven subunits, lacking the kinase module) from both S. cerevisiae and H. sapiens. We find that neither holo nor core human TFIIH exhibit processive translocation, consistent with the lack of start-site scanning in humans. Furthermore, in contrast to holo-TFIIH, the S. cerevisiae core-TFIIH also lacks processive translocation and its dsDNA-stimulated ATPase activity was reduced ~5-fold to a level comparable to the human complexes, potentially explaining the reported upstream shift in start-site observed in the absence of the S. cerevisiae kinase module. These results suggest that neither human nor S. cerevisiae core-TFIIH can translocate efficiently, and that the S. cerevisiae kinase module functions as a processivity factor to allow for robust transcription start-site scanning.

2002 ◽  
Vol 22 (19) ◽  
pp. 6697-6705 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer A. Fairley ◽  
Rachel Evans ◽  
Nicola A. Hawkes ◽  
Stefan G. E. Roberts

ABSTRACT The general transcription factor TFIIB plays a central role in the selection of the transcription initiation site. The mechanisms involved are not clear, however. In this study, we analyze core promoter features that are responsible for the susceptibility to mutations in TFIIB and cause a shift in the transcription start site. We show that TFIIB can modulate both the 5′ and 3′ parameters of transcription start site selection in a manner dependent upon the sequence of the initiator. Mutations in TFIIB that cause aberrant transcription start site selection concentrate in a region that plays a pivotal role in modulating TFIIB conformation. Using epitope-specific antibody probes, we show that a TFIIB mutant that causes aberrant transcription start site selection assembles at the promoter in a conformation different from that for wild-type TFIIB. In addition, we uncover a core promoter-dependent effect on TFIIB conformation and provide evidence for novel sequence-specific TFIIB promoter contacts.


2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (21) ◽  
pp. E2899-E2905 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irina O. Vvedenskaya ◽  
Hanif Vahedian-Movahed ◽  
Yuanchao Zhang ◽  
Deanne M. Taylor ◽  
Richard H. Ebright ◽  
...  

During transcription initiation, RNA polymerase (RNAP) holoenzyme unwinds ∼13 bp of promoter DNA, forming an RNAP-promoter open complex (RPo) containing a single-stranded transcription bubble, and selects a template-strand nucleotide to serve as the transcription start site (TSS). In RPo, RNAP core enzyme makes sequence-specific protein–DNA interactions with the downstream part of the nontemplate strand of the transcription bubble (“core recognition element,” CRE). Here, we investigated whether sequence-specific RNAP–CRE interactions affect TSS selection. To do this, we used two next-generation sequencing-based approaches to compare the TSS profile of WT RNAP to that of an RNAP derivative defective in sequence-specific RNAP–CRE interactions. First, using massively systematic transcript end readout, MASTER, we assessed effects of RNAP–CRE interactions on TSS selection in vitro and in vivo for a library of 47 (∼16,000) consensus promoters containing different TSS region sequences, and we observed that the TSS profile of the RNAP derivative defective in RNAP–CRE interactions differed from that of WT RNAP, in a manner that correlated with the presence of consensus CRE sequences in the TSS region. Second, using 5′ merodiploid native-elongating-transcript sequencing, 5′ mNET-seq, we assessed effects of RNAP–CRE interactions at natural promoters in Escherichia coli, and we identified 39 promoters at which RNAP–CRE interactions determine TSS selection. Our findings establish RNAP–CRE interactions are a functional determinant of TSS selection. We propose that RNAP–CRE interactions modulate the position of the downstream end of the transcription bubble in RPo, and thereby modulate TSS selection, which involves transcription bubble expansion or transcription bubble contraction (scrunching or antiscrunching).


1987 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corolyn J Collins ◽  
Richard B Levene ◽  
Christina P Ravera ◽  
Marker J Dombalagian ◽  
David M Livingston ◽  
...  

Most patients with von Willebrand's disease appear to have a defect affecting the level of expression of the von Willebrand factor (vWf) gene. Thus, an understanding of the pathogenesis of von Willebrand's disease will require an analysis of the structure and function of the vWf gene in normals and in patients. To begin such analyses, we have screened a human genomic cosmid library with probes obtained from vWf cDNA and isolated a colinear segment spanning ≈175 kb in five overlapping clones. This segment extends ≈25 kb upstream and ≈5 kb downstream of the transcription start and stop sites for vWf mRNA, implying the vWf gene has a length of ≈150 kb. Within one of these clones, the vWf transcription initiation sites have been mapped. A portion of the promoter region has been sequenced, revealing a typical TATA box, a downstream CCAAT box, and a perfect downstream repeat of the 8 base pairs containing the major transcription start site. Primer extension analysis suggests that sequences contained within the downstream repeat of the transcription start site may be used as minor initiation sites in endothelial cells. Transfection studies are underway to evaluate the role of sequences within this promoter region in gene regulatory activity. Comparative restriction analyses of cloned and chromosomal DNA segments strongly suggests that no major alterations ocurred during cloning and that there is only one complete copy of the vWf gene in the human haploid genome. Similar analyses of DNA from vWf-expressing endothelial cells and non-expressing white blood cells suggests that no major rearrangements are associated with vWf gene expression. Finally, cross hybridization patterns among seven mammalian species suggests a strong conservation of genomic sequences encoding the plasma portion of vWf, but a lower degree of conservation of sequences encoding the N terminal region of provWf.


2010 ◽  
Vol 192 (13) ◽  
pp. 3311-3320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin L. Ungerer ◽  
Brenda S. Pratte ◽  
Teresa Thiel

ABSTRACT Little is known about the regulation of nitrogenase genes in cyanobacteria. Transcription of the nifH1 and vnfH genes, encoding dinitrogenase reductases for the heterocyst-specific Mo-nitrogenase and the alternative V-nitrogenase, respectively, was studied by using a lacZ reporter. Despite evidence for a transcription start site just upstream of nifH1 and vnfH, promoter fragments that included these start sites did not drive the transcription of lacZ and, for nifH1, did not drive the expression of nifHDK1. Further analysis using larger regions upstream of nifH1 indicated that a promoter within nifU1 and a promoter upstream of nifB1 both contributed to expression of nifHDK1, with the nifB1 promoter contributing to most of the expression. Similarly, while the region upstream of vnfH, containing the putative transcription start site, did not drive expression of lacZ, the region that included the promoter for the upstream gene, ava4055, did. Characterization of the previously reported nifH1 and vnfH transcriptional start sites by 5′RACE (5′ rapid amplification of cDNA ends) revealed that these 5′ ends resulted from processing of larger transcripts rather than by de novo transcription initiation. The 5′ positions of both the vnfH and nifH1 transcripts lie at the base of a stem-loop structure that may serve to stabilize the nifHDK1 and vnfH specific transcripts compared to the transcripts for other genes in the operons providing the proper stoichiometry for the Nif proteins for nitrogenase synthesis.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael P. Meers ◽  
Karen Adelman ◽  
Robert J. Duronio ◽  
Brian D. Strahl ◽  
Daniel J. McKay ◽  
...  

AbstractBackgroundHigh-resolution transcription start site (TSS) mapping in D. melanogaster embryos and cell lines has revealed a rich and detailed landscape of both cis- and trans-regulatory elements and factors. However, TSS profiling has not been investigated in an orthogonal in vivo setting. Here, we present a comprehensive dataset that links TSS dynamics with nucleosome occupancy and gene expression in the wandering third instar larva, a developmental stage characterized by large-scale shifts in transcriptional programs in preparation for metamorphosis.ResultsThe data recapitulate major regulatory classes of TSSs, based on peak width, promoter-proximal polymerase pausing, and cis-regulatory element density. We confirm the paucity of divergent transcription units in D. melanogaster, but also identify notable exceptions. Furthermore, we identify thousands of novel initiation events occurring at unannotated TSSs that can be classified into functional categories by their local density of histone modifications. Interestingly, a sub-class of these unannotated TSSs overlaps with functionally validated enhancer elements, consistent with a regulatory role for “enhancer RNAs” (eRNAs) in defining transcriptional programs that are important for animal development.ConclusionsHigh-depth TSS mapping is a powerful strategy for identifying and characterizing low-abundance and/or low-stability RNAs. Global analysis of transcription initiation patterns in a developing organism reveals a vast number of novel initiation events that identify potential eRNAs as well as other non-coding transcripts critical for animal development.


2003 ◽  
Vol 23 (17) ◽  
pp. 6267-6278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mafalda Escobar-Henriques ◽  
Bertrand Daignan-Fornier ◽  
Martine A. Collart

ABSTRACT Guanylic nucleotides are essential cellular players, and the critical enzyme in their tightly regulated synthesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is encoded by the IMD2 gene. The transcription of IMD2 is subject to general repression by nutrient limitation through the cis nutrient-sensing element. It is also subject to specific feedback regulation by the end products of the guanylic nucleotide synthesis pathway. The critical cis element for this latter mechanism is the guanine response element (GRE), a TATAATA sequence which is located 202 nucleotides upstream of the transcription initiation site and which functions as the IMD2 TATA box. We show that the GRE functions in conjunction with a 52-nucleotide stretch near the transcription start site. This very unusual promoter structure ensures low, basal expression of IMD2 and the recruitment of TFIID to the GRE in response to guanylic nucleotide limitation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (21) ◽  
pp. 12282-12296
Author(s):  
Jeannette Kappenberger ◽  
Wolfgang Koelmel ◽  
Elisabeth Schoenwetter ◽  
Tobias Scheuer ◽  
Julia Woerner ◽  
...  

Abstract The superfamily 2 helicase XPB is an integral part of the general transcription factor TFIIH and assumes essential catalytic functions in transcription initiation and nucleotide excision repair. The ATPase activity of XPB is required in both processes. We investigated the interaction network that regulates XPB via the p52 and p8 subunits with functional mutagenesis based on our crystal structure of the p52/p8 complex and current cryo-EM structures. Importantly, we show that XPB’s ATPase can be activated either by DNA or by the interaction with the p52/p8 proteins. Intriguingly, we observe that the ATPase activation by p52/p8 is significantly weaker than the activation by DNA and when both p52/p8 and DNA are present, p52/p8 dominates the maximum activation. We therefore define p52/p8 as the master regulator of XPB acting as an activator and speed limiter at the same time. A correlative analysis of the ATPase and translocase activities of XPB shows that XPB only acts as a translocase within the context of complete core TFIIH and that XPA increases the processivity of the translocase complex without altering XPB’s ATPase activity. Our data define an intricate network that tightly controls the activity of XPB during transcription and nucleotide excision repair.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Kappenberger ◽  
W. Koelmel ◽  
E. Schoenwetter ◽  
T. Scheuer ◽  
J. Woerner ◽  
...  

AbstractThe superfamily 2 helicase XPB is an integral part of the general transcription factor TFIIH and assumes essential catalytic functions in transcription initiation and nucleotide excision repair. In both processes the ATPase activity of XPB is essential. We investigated the interaction network that regulates XPB via the p52 and p8 subunits with functional mutagenesis based on a crystal structure of the full p52/p8 complex and current cryo-EM structures. Importantly, we show that XPB’s ATPase can be activated either by DNA or by the interaction with the p52/p8 proteins. Intriguingly, we observe that the ATPase activation by p52/p8 is significantly weaker than the activation by DNA and when both p52/p8 and DNA are present, p52/p8 dominates the maximum activation. We therefore define p52/p8 as the master regulator of XPB that acts as an activator and speed limiter at the same time. A correlative analysis of the ATPase and translocase activities of XPB shows that XPB only acts as a translocase within the context of complete core TFIIH and that XPA increases the processivity of the translocase complex without altering XPB’s ATPase activity. Our data unravel an intricate network that tightly controls the activity of XPB during transcription and nucleotide excision repair.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document