Promoter escape by RNA polymerase II. Downstream promoter DNA is required during multiple steps of early transcription

Promoter-proximal nucleosomes attenuate RNA polymerase II transcription through TFIID

A nucleosome is typically positioned with its proximal edge (NPE) ∼50 bp downstream from the transcription start site of metazoan RNA polymerase II promoters. This +1 nucleosome has distinctive characteristics, including the presence of variant histone types and trimethylation of histone H3 at lysine 4. To address the role of these features in transcription complex assembly, we generated templates with four different promoters and nucleosomes located at a variety of downstream positions, which were transcribed in vitro using HeLa nuclear extracts. Two promoters lacked TATA elements, but all supported strong initiation from a single transcription start site. In contrast to results with minimal in vitro systems based on the TATA-binding protein (TBP), TATA promoter templates with a +51 NPE were transcriptionally inhibited in extracts; activity continuously increased as the nucleosome was moved downstream to +100. Inhibition was much more pronounced for the TATA-less promoters: +51 NPE templates were inactive, and substantial activity was only seen with the +100 NPE templates. Substituting the histone variants H2A.Z, H3.3, or both did not eliminate the inhibition. However, addition of excess TBP restored activity on nucleosomal templates with TATA promoters, even with an NPE at +20. Remarkably, nucleosomal templates with histone H3 trimethylated at lysine 4 are active with an NPE at +51 for both TATA and TATA-less promoters. Our results strongly suggest that the +1 nucleosome interferes with promoter recognition by TFIID. This inhibition can be overcome with TBP alone at TATA promoters or through positive interactions with histone modifications and TFIID.

Promoter clearance by RNA polymerase II

Many changes must occur to the RNA polymerase II (pol II) transcription complex as it makes the transition from initiation into transcript elongation. During this intermediate phase of transcription, contact with initiation factors is lost and stable association with the nascent transcript is established. These changes collectively comprise promoter clearance. Once the transcript elongation complex has reached a point where its properties are indistinguishable from those of complexes with much longer transcripts, promoter clearance is complete. The clearance process for pol II consists of a number of steps and it extends for a surprisingly long distance downstream of transcription start. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: RNA polymerase II Transcript Elongation.

Inactivated RNA polymerase II open complexes can be reactivated with TFIIE

Transcript initiation by RNA polymerase II (pol II) requires a helicase within TFIIH to generate the unpaired template strand. However, pol II preinitiation complexes (PICs) lose the ability to synthesize RNA very rapidly upon exposure to ATP alone in the absence of other NTPs. This inactivation is not caused by the TFIIH kinase activity, the loss of transcription factors or pol II from the PIC, or the collapse of the initially formed transcription bubble. TFIIE is necessary for PIC formation, but TFIIE is not retained as a stable component in PICs prepared by our protocol. Nevertheless, activity can be at least partially restored to ATP-treated PICs by the readdition of TFIIE. PICs formed on premelted (bubble) templates require TFIIH for effective transcript elongation to +20. Incubation of bubble template PICs with ATP caused reduced yields of 20-mers, but this effect was partially reversed by the addition of TFIIE. Our results suggest that once the open complex is formed, TFIIH decays into an inactive configuration in the absence of nucleotides for transcription. Although TFIIE does not play a role in transcript initiation itself, inactivation resulting from ATP preincubation can be reversed by a remodeling process mediated by TFIIE. Finally, we have also uncovered a major role for TFIIF in the earliest stages of transcript elongation that is unique to bubble templates.

Mapping of small RNAs in the human ENCODE regions

The elucidation of the largely unknown transcriptome of small RNAs is crucial for the understanding of genome and cellular function. We report here the results of the analysis of small RNAs (< 50 nt) in the ENCODE regions of the human genome. Size-fractionated RNAs from four different cell lines (HepG2, HelaS3, GM06990, SK-N-SH) were mapped with the forward and reverse ENCODE high-density resolution tiling arrays. The top 1% of hybridization signals are termed SmRfrags (Small RNA fragments). Eight percent of SmRfrags overlap the GENCODE genes (CDS), given that the majority map to intergenic regions (34%), intronic regions (53%), and untranslated regions (UTRs) (5%). In addition, 9.6% and 16.8% of SmRfrags in the 5' UTR regions overlap significantly with His/Pol II/TAF250 binding sites and DNase I Hypersensitive sites, respectively (compared to the 5.3% and 9% expected). Interestingly, 17%-24% (depending on the cell line) of SmRfrags are sense-antisense strand pairs that show evidence of overlapping transcription. Only 3.4% and 7.2% of SmRfrags in intergenic regions overlap transcribed fragments (Txfrags) in HeLa and GM06990 cell lines, respectively. We hypothesized that a fraction of the identified SmRfrags corresponded to microRNAs. We tested by Northern blot a set of 15 high-likelihood predictions of microRNA candidates that overlap with smRfrags and validated three potential microRNAs ( approximately 20 nt length). Notably, most of the remaining candidates showed a larger hybridizing band ( approximately 100 nt) that could be a microRNA precursor. The small RNA transcriptome is emerging as an important and abundant component of the genome function.

Efficient production of recombinant human transcription factor IIE

Transcription factor IIE (TFIIE) is a general initiation and promoter escape factor for RNA polymerase II composed of p56 (TFIIE-alpha) and p34 (TFIIE-beta) subunits. Our laboratories experienced difficulty producing adequate quantities of recombinant human TFIIE-alpha for in vitro studies using available clones. We therefore re-engineered the TFIIE subunit production vectors and tested various Escherichia coli host strains to optimize expression. We report a much-improved system for production of pure, soluble, and active TFIIE complex for in vitro studies.