Self-transcription: RNA polymerase transcription of its own genes, and its role in cellular differentiation and cell cycling.
The concept of RNA polymerase self-transcription, where eukaryotic RNA polymerase II and prokaryotic holoenzyme are responsible for transcription of their own genes, would give these enzymes a unique role in the cellular transcriptional and translational machinery. This self-transcriptional ability would equip a cell with an exquisite mechanism of autogenous regulation for the appearance of these transcriptional units. Such a mechanism could allow layering of other transcriptional control pathways upon the RNA polymerase self-transcriptional pathway, thus forming a complex array of mechanisms to regulate transcription of genes concerned with cellular differentiation and cell cycling. It is proposed that RNA polymerase self-transcription is the central control point of gene expression in cellular differentiation and for cell cycling, thus fulfilling the role of an intrinsic biological clock.
D000818:Animals; D002453:Cell Cycle; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D004257:DNA Polymerase II / Q000235:genetics; D012321:DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases / Q000235:genetics*; D005057:Eukaryotic Cells / Q000166:cytology; D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D008957:Models, Genetic; D012319:RNA Polymerase II / Q000235:genetics; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D012319:RNA Polymerase II; D012321:DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases; D004257:DNA Polymerase II