Splicing-Dependent RNA Polymerase Pausing in Yeast

What is it about?

It is shown, using reporter genes that are synchronously induced in budding yeast cells, that RNA polymerase II (Pol II) pauses very transiently near the 3' end of introns and becomes phosphorylated on the carboxy-terminal domain of its large subunit. Pol II does not pause on intron-containing genes that contain mutations that disrupt splicing. Using a genetic suppression assay, Pol II pausing is demonstrated to be splicing dependent, as pausing is restored on a mutant reporter when the splicing defect is suppressed in trans.

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Why is it important?

This is the first demonstration that splicing can dramatically alter Pol II behaviour as well as change its phosphorylation status.