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Organismal benefits of transcription speed control at gene boundaries
Author(s) -
Leng Xueyuan,
Ivanov Maxim,
Kindgren Peter,
Malik Indranil,
Thieffry Axel,
Brodersen Peter,
Sandelin Albin,
Kaplan Craig D,
Marquardt Sebastian
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
embo reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.584
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1469-3178
pISSN - 1469-221X
DOI - 10.15252/embr.201949315
Subject(s) - rna polymerase ii , transcription (linguistics) , biology , gene , gene expression , microbiology and biotechnology , genetics , transcription factor , rna splicing , regulation of gene expression , promoter , rna , linguistics , philosophy
RNA polymerase II ( RNAPII ) transcription is crucial for gene expression. RNAPII density peaks at gene boundaries, associating these key regions for gene expression control with limited RNAPII movement. The connections between RNAPII transcription speed and gene regulation in multicellular organisms are poorly understood. Here, we directly modulate RNAPII transcription speed by point mutations in the second largest subunit of RNAPII in Arabidopsis thaliana . A RNAPII mutation predicted to decelerate transcription is inviable, while accelerating RNAPII transcription confers phenotypes resembling auto‐immunity. Nascent transcription profiling revealed that RNAPII complexes with accelerated transcription clear stalling sites at both gene ends, resulting in read‐through transcription. The accelerated transcription mutant NRPB 2‐Y732F exhibits increased association with 5′ splice site (5′ SS ) intermediates and enhanced splicing efficiency. Our findings highlight potential advantages of RNAPII stalling through local reduction in transcription speed to optimize gene expression for the development of multicellular organisms.