scholarly journals Functional mRNA can be generated by RNA polymerase III.

1995 ◽  
Vol 15 (7) ◽  
pp. 3597-3607 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Gunnery ◽  
M B Mathews

Eukaryotic cellular mRNA is believed to be synthesized exclusively by RNA polymerase II (pol II), whereas pol I produces long rRNAs and pol III produces 5S rRNA, tRNA, and other small RNAs. To determine whether this functional differentiation is obligatory, we examined the translational potential of an artificial pol III transcript. The coding region of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 tat gene was placed under the control of a strong pol III promoter from the adenovirus type 2 VA RNAI gene. The resultant chimera, pVA-Tat, was transcribed accurately in vivo and in vitro and gave rise to Tat protein, which transactivated a human immunodeficiency virus-driven chloramphenicol acetyltransferase reporter construct in transfected HeLa cells. pol III-specific mutations down-regulated VA-Tat RNA production in vivo and in vitro and dramatically reduced chloramphenicol acetyltransferase transactivation. As expected for a pol III transcript, VA-Tat RNA was not detectably capped at its 5' end or polyadenylated at its 3' end, but, like mRNA, it was associated with polysomes in a salt-stable manner. Mutational analysis of a short open reading frame upstream of the Tat-coding sequence implicates scanning in the initiation of VA-Tat RNA translation despite the absence of a cap. In comparison with tat mRNA generated by pol II, VA-Tat RNA was present on smaller polysomes and was apparently translated less efficiently, which is consistent with a relatively low initiation rate. Evidently, human cells are capable of utilizing pol III transcripts as functional mRNAs, and neither a cap nor a poly(A) tail is essential for translation, although they may be stimulatory. These findings raise the possibility that some cellular mRNAs are made by pol I or pol III.

2020 ◽  
Vol 295 (15) ◽  
pp. 4782-4795 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philipp E. Merkl ◽  
Michael Pilsl ◽  
Tobias Fremter ◽  
Katrin Schwank ◽  
Christoph Engel ◽  
...  

RNA polymerase I (Pol I) is a highly efficient enzyme specialized in synthesizing most ribosomal RNAs. After nucleosome deposition at each round of rDNA replication, the Pol I transcription machinery has to deal with nucleosomal barriers. It has been suggested that Pol I–associated factors facilitate chromatin transcription, but it is unknown whether Pol I has an intrinsic capacity to transcribe through nucleosomes. Here, we used in vitro transcription assays to study purified WT and mutant Pol I variants from the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and compare their abilities to pass a nucleosomal barrier with those of yeast Pol II and Pol III. Under identical conditions, purified Pol I and Pol III, but not Pol II, could transcribe nucleosomal templates. Pol I mutants lacking either the heterodimeric subunit Rpa34.5/Rpa49 or the C-terminal part of the specific subunit Rpa12.2 showed a lower processivity on naked DNA templates, which was even more reduced in the presence of a nucleosome. Our findings suggest that the lobe-binding subunits Rpa34.5/Rpa49 and Rpa12.2 facilitate passage through nucleosomes, suggesting possible cooperation among these subunits. We discuss the contribution of Pol I–specific subunit domains to efficient Pol I passage through nucleosomes in the context of transcription rate and processivity.


2008 ◽  
Vol 28 (8) ◽  
pp. 2598-2607 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aneeshkumar Gopalakrishnan Arimbasseri ◽  
Purnima Bhargava

ABSTRACT The genes transcribed by RNA polymerase III (Pol III) generally have intragenic promoter elements. One of them, the yeast U6 snRNA (SNR6) gene is activated in vitro by a positioned nucleosome between its intragenic box A and extragenic, downstream box B separated by ∼200 bp. We demonstrate here that the in vivo chromatin structure of the gene region is characterized by the presence of an array of positioned nucleosomes, with only one of them in the 5′ end of the gene having a regulatory role. A positioned nucleosome present between boxes A and B in vivo does not move when the gene is repressed due to nutritional deprivation. In contrast, the upstream nucleosome which covers the TATA box under repressed conditions is shifted ∼50 bp further upstream by the ATP-dependent chromatin remodeler RSC upon activation. It is marked with the histone variant H2A.Z and H4K16 acetylation in active state. In the absence of H2A.Z, the chromatin structure of the gene does not change, suggesting that H2A.Z is not required for establishing the active chromatin structure. These results show that the chromatin structure directly participates in regulation of a Pol III-transcribed gene under different states of its activity in vivo.


2007 ◽  
Vol 27 (24) ◽  
pp. 8729-8738 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chih-Chi Yuan ◽  
Xinyang Zhao ◽  
Laurence Florens ◽  
Selene K. Swanson ◽  
Michael P. Washburn ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Chromatin remodeling and histone modification are essential for eukaryotic transcription regulation, but little is known about chromatin-modifying activities acting on RNA polymerase III (Pol III)-transcribed genes. The human U6 small nuclear RNA promoter, located 5′ of the transcription start site, consists of a core region directing basal transcription and an activating region that recruits the transcription factors Oct-1 and Staf (ZNF143). Oct-1 activates transcription in part by helping recruit core binding factors, but nothing is known about the mechanisms of transcription activation by Staf. We show that Staf activates U6 transcription from a preassembled chromatin template in vitro and associates with several proteins linked to chromatin modification, among them chromodomain-helicase-DNA binding protein 8 (CHD8). CHD8 binds to histone H3 di- and trimethylated on lysine 4. It resides on the human U6 promoter as well as the mRNA IRF3 promoter in vivo and contributes to efficient transcription from both these promoters. Thus, Pol III transcription from type 3 promoters uses some of the same factors used for chromatin remodeling at Pol II promoters.


1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (6) ◽  
pp. 4255-4261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josephine E. Sutcliffe ◽  
Carol A. Cairns ◽  
Angela McLees ◽  
Simon J. Allison ◽  
Kerrie Tosh ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT RNA polymerase III (Pol III) transcription is subject to repression by the retinoblastoma protein RB, both in vitro and in vivo (R. J. White, D. Trouche, K. Martin, S. P. Jackson, and T. Kouzarides, Nature 382:88–90, 1996). This is achieved through a direct interaction between RB and TFIIIB, a multisubunit factor that is required for the expression of all Pol III templates (C. G. C. Larminie, C. A. Cairns, R. Mital, K. Martin, T. Kouzarides, S. P. Jackson, and R. J. White, EMBO J. 16:2061–2071, 1997; W.-M. Chu, Z. Wang, R. G. Roeder, and C. W. Schmid, J. Biol. Chem. 272:14755–14761, 1997). p107 and p130 are two closely related proteins that display 30 to 35% identity with the RB polypeptide and share some of its functions. We show that p107 and p130 can both repress Pol III transcription in transient transfection assays or when added to cell extracts. Pull-down assays and immunoprecipitations using recombinant components demonstrate that a subunit of TFIIIB interacts physically with p107 and p130. In addition, endogenous TFIIIB is shown by cofractionation and coimmunoprecipitation to associate stably with both p107 and p130. Disruption of this interaction in vivo by using the E7 oncoprotein of human papillomavirus results in a marked increase in Pol III transcription. Pol III activity is also deregulated in fibroblasts derived from p107 p130 double knockout mice. We conclude that TFIIIB is targeted for repression not only by RB but also by its relatives p107 and p130.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pratibha Bhalla ◽  
Dipti Vernekar ◽  
Ashutosh Shukla ◽  
Benoit Gilquin ◽  
Yohann Couté ◽  
...  

AbstractMany regulatory proteins and complexes influence transcription by RNA polymerase (pol) II. In comparison, only a few regulatory proteins are known for pol III, which transcribes mostly house-keeping and non-coding genes. Yet, pol III transcription is precisely regulated under various stress conditions like starvation. We used pol III transcription complex components TFIIIC (Tfc6), pol III (Rpc128) and TFIIIB (Brf1) as baits to identify potential interactors through mass spectrometry-based proteomics. A large interactome constituting known chromatin modifiers, factors and regulators of transcription by pol I and pol II revealed the possibility of a large number of signaling cues for pol III transcription against adverse conditions. We found one of the pol II-associated factors, Paf1 complex (PAF1C) interacts with the three baits. Its occupancy on the pol III-transcribed genes is low and not correlated with pol III occupancy. Paf1 deletion leads to higher occupancy of pol III, γ-H2A and DNA pol2 but no change in nucleosome positions. Genotoxins exposure causes pol III but not Paf1 loss from the genes. PAF1C promotes the pol III pausing and restricts its accumulation on the genes, which reduces the replication stress caused by the pol III barrier and transcription-replication conflict on these highly transcribed genes.


1996 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. 3291-3299 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Y Yankulov ◽  
M Pandes ◽  
S McCracken ◽  
D Bouchard ◽  
D L Bentley

We investigated the role of TFIIH in transcription by RNA polymerase II (pol II) in vivo by microinjection of antibodies against this factor into Xenopus oocytes. Five different antibodies directed against four subunits of TFIIH were tested for effects on transcription of coinjected human immunodeficiency virus type 2 and c-myc templates. Each of these antibodies severely reduced the efficiency of elongation through human immunodeficiency virus type 2 and c-myc terminator elements. In contrast, an anti-TFIIB antibody did not inhibit elongation. Anti-TFIIH antibodies also had a much smaller inhibitory effect on total transcription than did anti-TFIIB or anti-pol II large subunit. Three inhibitors of TFIIH kinase activity, H-7, H-8, and dichlororibofuranosylbenzimidazole (DRB), inhibited elongation similarly to anti-TFIIH antibodies. These results strongly suggest a role for TFIIH in the stimulation of transcriptional elongation in vivo.


1997 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 1817-1823 ◽  
Author(s):  
T P Cujec ◽  
H Cho ◽  
E Maldonado ◽  
J Meyer ◽  
D Reinberg ◽  
...  

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) encodes a transcriptional transactivator (Tat), which binds to an RNA hairpin called the transactivation response element (TAR) that is located downstream of the site of initiation of viral transcription. Tat stimulates the production of full-length viral transcripts by RNA polymerase II (pol II). In this study, we demonstrate that Tat coimmunoprecipitates with the pol II holoenzyme in cells and that it binds to the purified holoenzyme in vitro. Furthermore, Tat affinity chromatography purifies a holoenzyme from HeLa nuclear extracts which, upon addition of TBP and TFIIB, supports Tat transactivation in vitro, indicating that it contains all the cellular proteins required for the function of Tat. By demonstrating that Tat interacts with the holoenzyme in the absence of TAR, our data suggest a single-step assembly of Tat and the transcription complex on the long terminal repeat of HIV.


2001 ◽  
Vol 21 (15) ◽  
pp. 5031-5040 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Pluta ◽  
Olivier Lefebvre ◽  
Nancy C. Martin ◽  
Wieslaw J. Smagowicz ◽  
David R. Stanford ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Although yeast RNA polymerase III (Pol III) and the auxiliary factors TFIIIC and TFIIIB are well characterized, the mechanisms of class III gene regulation are poorly understood. Previous studies identified MAF1, a gene that affects tRNA suppressor efficiency and interacts genetically with Pol III. We show here that tRNA levels are elevated in maf1 mutant cells. In keeping with the higher levels of tRNA observed in vivo, the in vitro rate of Pol III RNA synthesis is significantly increased in maf1cell extracts. Mutations in the RPC160 gene encoding the largest subunit of Pol III which reduce tRNA levels were identified as suppressors of the maf1 growth defect. Interestingly, Maf1p is located in the nucleus and coimmunopurifies with epitope-tagged RNA Pol III. These results indicate that Maf1p acts as a negative effector of Pol III synthesis. This potential regulator of Pol III transcription is likely conserved since orthologs of Maf1p are present in other eukaryotes, including humans.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Haifeng Hou ◽  
Yan Li ◽  
Mo Wang ◽  
Aijun Liu ◽  
Zishuo Yu ◽  
...  

AbstractTermination of the RNA polymerase III (Pol III)-mediated transcription requires the conversion of an elongation complex (EC) to a pre-termination complex (PTC) on poly-deoxythymidine (dT)-containing non-template strand, a mechanism distinct from Pol I and Pol II. Here, our in vitro transcription elongation assay showed that 5-7 dT-containing DNA template led to transcription termination of Pol III, but not Pol I or Pol II. We assembled human Pol III PTC on a 7 dT-containing DNA template and determined the structure at 3.6 Å resolution. The structure reveals that poly-dT are trapped in a narrow exit tunnel formed by RPC2. A hydrophobic gate of the exit tunnel separates the bases of two connected deoxythymidines and may prevent translocation of the non-template strand. The fork loop 2 stabilizes both template and non-template strands around the transcription fork, and may further prevent strand translocation. Our study shows that the Pol III-specific exit tunnel and FL2 allow for efficient translocation of non-poly-dT sequence during transcription elongation but trap poly-dT to promote DNA retention of Pol III, revealing molecular mechanism of poly-dT-dependent transcription termination of Pol III.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philipp E. Merkl ◽  
Michael Pilsl ◽  
Tobias Fremter ◽  
Katrin Schwank ◽  
Christoph Engel ◽  
...  

AbstractRNA polymerase I (Pol I) is a highly efficient enzyme specialized to synthesize most of the ribosomal RNA. After nucleosome deposition at each round of replication the Pol I transcription machinery has to deal with nucleosomal barriers. It was suggested that Pol I-associated factors facilitate chromatin transcription, but it is not known whether Pol I has an intrinsic capacity to transcribe through nucleosomes. Here we used in vitro transcription assays to study purified Pol I of the yeast S. cerevisiae and Pol I mutants in comparison to Pol II and Pol III to pass a nucleosome. Under identical conditions, purified Pol I and Pol III, but not Pol II, were able to transcribe nucleosomal templates. Pol I mutants lacking either the heterodimeric subunit Rpa34.5/Rpa49 or the C-terminal part of the specific subunit Rpa12.2 showed a lower processivity on naked DNA templates, which was even more reduced in the presence of a nucleosome. The contribution of Pol I specific subunit domains to efficient passage through nucleosomes in context with transcription rate and processivity is discussed.


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