Overview of Transcription
- Transcription initiation by RNA Polymerase II requires the assembly
of several basal transcription factors that in conjunction with RNA Pol
II form a stable preinitiation complex (PIC).
- An early and critical event
in this process is the binding of the multiprotein complex TFIID to the
TATA box through its central component, the TATA binding protein (TBP),
followed by the association of TFIIB and TFIIA to this complex.
- The formation
and activity of this TBP/TFIIA/TFIIB/TATA (DAB) complex appear to be carefully
regulated by both gene specific and general transcriptional regulators.
- Crystal structures of TBP, the TBP/TATA complex , the TBP/TFIIB/TATA complex
and the TBP/TFIIA/TATA complex have been determined by myself and others,
and represent a considerable body of structural information about the DAB
complex.
- There are, however, no structures of basal transcription factors
complexed to any type of transcriptional regulator. Without such structures
understanding the mechanism of transcriptional regulation will not be possible.
- Our research involves determining the structures of transcriptional repressors
in their active form bound to the TBP/TATA complex.
HOME
Background by John Bell