title: The mediator couples transcription and splicing.
abstract: Transcription is coupled with pre-mRNA splicing in metazoans. In the current issue of Molecular Cell, Huang et al. (2012) show that Med23 interacts with the RNA binding protein hnRNP L to regulate alternative splicing, thus expanding Mediator's function beyond transcriptional control.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Virology, College of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China.
authors.forename: Xiong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.forename: Xiang-Dong
authors.initials: XD
authors.lastname: Fu