Emerging roles of ubiquitin in transcription regulation.
Ubiquitin is a small protein that was initially found to function as a tag that can be covalently attached to proteins to mark them for destruction by a multisubunit, adenosine 5'-triphosphate-dependent protease called the proteasome. Ubiquitin is now emerging as a key regulator of eukaryotic messenger RNA synthesis, a process that depends on the RNA synthetic enzyme RNA polymerase II and the transcription factors that control its activity. Ubiquitin controls messenger RNA synthesis not only by mechanisms involving ubiquitin-dependent destruction of transcription factors by the proteasome, but also by an intriguing collection of previously unknown and unanticipated mechanisms that appear to be independent of the proteasome.
Conaway
Ronald C
RC
Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Kansas City, MO 64110, USA.
Brower
Christopher S
CS
Conaway
Joan Weliky
JW
D000818:Animals; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases / Q000378:metabolism; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D008025:Ligases / Q000378:metabolism; D008957:Models, Genetic; D009097:Multienzyme Complexes / Q000378:metabolism; D046988:Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D012319:RNA Polymerase II / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D015534:Trans-Activators / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D015533:Transcriptional Activation; D025801:Ubiquitin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases
D009097:Multienzyme Complexes; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D015534:Trans-Activators; D014157:Transcription Factors; D025801:Ubiquitin; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases; D012319:RNA Polymerase II; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases; D046988:Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex; D008025:Ligases