Scientists identify key roadblock to gene expression

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In yeast a nucleosome sits on top of the transcription start site so RNA polymerase must contend with that nucleosome as soon as it begins to transcribe the gene. In contrast nucleosomes are positioned further downstream in fruit flies so transcripti ...
In yeast, a nucleosome sits on top of the transcription start site, so RNA polymerase must contend with that nucleosome as soon as it begins to transcribe the gene. In contrast, nucleosomes are positioned further downstream in fruit flies, so transcription starts but then soon pauses at the first nucleosome RNA polymerase encounters. Credit: B. Franklin Pugh lab, Penn State University

A team of scientists has provided, for the first time, a detailed map of how the building blocks of chromosomes, the cellular structures that contain genes, are organized in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. The work identifies a critical stop sign for transcription, the first step in gene expression, and has implications for understanding how the AIDS virus regulates its genes. The findings will be published in the 15 May 2008 issue of the journal Nature.


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