Control of intrinsic transcription termination by N and NusA: The basic mechanisms

Citation
I. Gusarov et E. Nudler, Control of intrinsic transcription termination by N and NusA: The basic mechanisms, CELL, 107(4), 2001, pp. 437-449
Citations number
56
Language
INGLESE
art.tipo
Article
Categorie Soggetti
Cell & Developmental Biology
Journal title
CELL
ISSN journal
0092-8674 → ACNP
Volume
107
Issue
4
Year of publication
2001
Pages
437 - 449
Database
ISI
SICI code
0092-8674(20011116)107:4<437:COITTB>2.0.ZU;2-N
Abstract
Intrinsic transcription termination plays a crucial role in regulating gene expression in prokaryotes. After a short pause, the termination signal app ears in RNA as a hairpin that destabilizes the elongation complex (EC). We demonstrate that negative and positive-termination factors control the effi ciency of termination primarily through a direct modulation of hairpin fold ing and, to a much lesser extent, by changing pausing at the point of termi nation. The mechanism controlling hairpin formation at the termination poin t relies on weak protein interactions with single-stranded RNA, which corre sponds to the upstream portion of the hairpin. Escherichia coli NusA protei n destabilizes these interactions and thus promotes hairpin folding and ter mination. Stabilization of these contacts by phage lambda N protein leads t o antitermination.