Abstract
SummaryRNA polymerases (RNAPs) transcribe genes through a cycle of recruitment to promoter DNA, initiation, elongation, and termination. After termination, RNAP is thought to initiate the next round of transcription by detaching from DNA and rebinding a new promoter. We used single-molecule fluorescence microscopy to observe individual RNAP molecules after transcript release at a terminator. Following termination, RNAP almost always remained bound to DNA and sometimes exhibited one-dimensional sliding over thousands of basepairs. Unexpectedly, the DNA-bound RNAP often restarted transcription, usually in reverse direction, thus producing an antisense transcript. Furthermore, we report evidence of this “secondary initiation” in live cells, using genome-wide RNA sequencing. These findings reveal an alternative transcription cycle that allows RNAP to reinitiate without dissociating from DNA, which is likely to have important implications for gene regulation.
Publisher
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Cited by
1 articles.
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