Terminate and make a loop: regulation of transcriptional directionality

Pawel Grzechnik, Sue Mei Tan-Wong, Nick J. Proudfoot

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

32 Citations (Scopus)
181 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Bidirectional promoters are a common feature of many eukaryotic organisms from yeast to humans. RNA Polymerase II that is recruited to this type of promoter can start transcribing in either direction using alternative DNA strands as the template. Such promiscuous transcription can lead to the synthesis of unwanted transcripts that may have negative effects on gene expression. Recent studies have identified transcription termination and gene looping as critical players in the enforcement of promoter directionality. Interestingly, both mechanisms share key components. Here, we focus on recent findings relating to the transcriptional output of bidirectional promoters.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)319-327
Number of pages9
JournalTrends in Biochemical Sciences
Volume39
Issue number7
Early online date10 Jun 2014
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jul 2014

Keywords

  • Bidirectional promoters
  • Gene loops
  • Transcriptional termination

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology
  • Medicine(all)

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