Messenger RNA is produced by RNA polymerase II (pol II) transcription, followed by processing of the primary transcript. Transcription, splicing and cleavage-polyadenylation can occur independently in vitro, but we demonstrate here that these processes are intimately linked in vivo. We show that the carboxy-terminal domain (CTD) of the pol II large subunit is required for efficient RNA processing. Splicing, processing of the 3' end and termination of transcription downstream of the poly(A) site, are all inhibited by truncation of the CTD. We found that the cleavage-polyadenylation factors CPSF and CstF specifically bound to CTD affinity columns and copurified with pol II in a high-molecular-mass complex. Our demonstration of an association between the CTD and 3'-processing factors, considered together with reports of a similar interaction with splicing factors, suggests that an mRNA 'factory' exists which carries out coupled transcription, splicing and cleavage-polyadenylation of mRNA precursors.
We have investigated the role of the RNA Polymerase II (Pol II) carboxy-terminal domain (CTD) in mRNA 5 capping. Transcripts made in vivo by Pol II with a truncated CTD had a lower proportion of capped 5 ends than those made by Pol II with a full-length CTD. In addition, the enzymes responsible for cap synthesis, RNA guanylyltransferase, and RNA (guanine-7)-methyltransferase bound directly to the phosphorylated, but not to the nonphosphorylated, form of the CTD in vitro. These results suggest that: (1) Pol II-specific capping of nascent transcripts in vivo is enhanced by recruitment of the capping enzymes to the CTD and (2) capping is co-ordinated with CTD phosphorylation.
The cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK)-activating kinase CAK has been proposed to function in the control of cell cycle progression, DNA repair and RNA polymerase II (pol II) transcription. Most CAK exists as complexes of three subunits: CDK7, cyclin H (CycH) and MAT1. This tripartite CAK occurs in a free form and in association with 'core' TFIIH, which functions in both pol II transcription and DNA repair. We investigated the substrate specificities of different forms of CAK. Addition of the MAT1 subunit to recombinant bipartite CDK7-CycH switched its substrate preference to favour the pol II large subunit C-terminal domain (CTD) over CDK2. We suggest that the MAT1 protein, previously shown to function as an assembly factor for CDK7-CycH, also acts to modulate CAK substrate specificity. The substrate specificities of natural TFIIH and free CAK were also compared. TFIIH had a strong preference for the CTD over CDK2 relative to free CAK. TFIIH, but not free CAK, could efficiently hyperphosphorylate the CTD. In the context of TFIIH, the kinase also acquired specificity for the general transcription factors TFIIE and TFIIF which were not recognized by free CAK. We conclude that the substrate preference of the CDK7-CycH kinase is governed by association with both MAT1 and 'core' TFIIH.
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