title: Archaeal RNA polymerase.
abstract: The recently solved X-ray crystal structures of archaeal RNA polymerase (RNAP) allow a structural comparison of the transcription machinery among all three domains of life. Archaeal transcription is very simple and all components, including the structures of general transcription factors and RNAP, are highly conserved in eukaryotes. Therefore, it could be a new model for the dissection of the eukaryotic transcription apparatus. The archaeal RNAP structure also provides a framework for addressing the functional role that Fe-S clusters play within the transcription machinery of archaea and eukaryotes. A comparison between bacterial and archaeal open complex models reveals likely key motifs of archaeal RNAP for DNA unwinding during the open complex formation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hirata
authors.forename: Katsuhiko S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Murakami
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001105:Archaea / Q000201:enzymology*; D012321:DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007506:Iron-Sulfur Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D007506:Iron-Sulfur Proteins; D012321:DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases