Scientists illuminate a hidden regulator in gene transcription
Gene transcription is the process by which DNA is copied and synthesized as messenger RNA (mRNA) — which delivers its genetic blueprints to the cell’s protein-making machinery. Now researchers at MIT and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) have identified a hidden, ephemeral phenomenon in cells that may play a major role in jump-starting mRNA production and regulating gene transcription. In a paper published in the online journal eLife, the researchers report using a new super-resolution imaging technique they’ve developed, to see individual mRNA molecules coming out of a gene in a live cell. Using this same technique, they observed that, just before mRNA’s appearance, the enzyme RNA polymerase II (Pol II) gathers in clusters on the same gene for just a few brief seconds before scattering apart. When the researchers manipulated the enzyme clusters in such a way that they stayed together for longer periods of time, they found that the...