Elongation by RNA polymerase II: structure-function relationship

Abstract

RNA polymerase II is the eukaryotic enzyme that transcribes all the mRNA in the cell. Complex mechanisms of transcription and its regulation underlie basic functions including differentiation and morphogenesis. Recent evidence indicates the process of RNA chain elongation as a key step in transcription control. Elongation was therefore expected and found to be linked to human diseases. For these reasons, major efforts in determining the structures of RNA polymerases from yeast and bacteria, at rest and as active enzymes, were undertaken. These studies have revealed much information regarding the processes involved in transcription. Eukaryotic RNA polymerases and their homologous bacterial counterparts are flexible enzymes with domains that separate DNA and RNA, prevent the escape of nucleic acids during transcription, allow for extended pausing or "arrest" during elongation, allow for translocation of the DNA and more. Structural studies of RNA polymerases are described below within the context of the process of transcription elongation, its regulation and function.