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Molecular and Cellular Biology, April 2004, p. 2863-2874, Vol. 24, No. 7
0270-7306/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/MCB.24.7.2863-2874.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

A Nonconserved Surface of the TFIIB Zinc Ribbon Domain Plays a Direct Role in RNA Polymerase II Recruitment

Thomas C. Tubon,1,2 William P. Tansey,2 and Winship Herr2*

Graduate Program in Genetics, State University of New York at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, New York 11794,1 Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York 117242

Received 4 August 2003/ Returned for modification 30 September 2003/ Accepted 7 January 2004

The general transcription factor TFIIB is a highly conserved and essential component of the eukaryotic RNA polymerase II (pol II) transcription initiation machinery. It consists of a single polypeptide with two conserved structural domains: an amino-terminal zinc ribbon structure (TFIIBZR) and a carboxy-terminal core (TFIIBCORE). We have analyzed the role of the amino-terminal region of human TFIIB in transcription in vivo and in vitro. We identified a small nonconserved surface of the TFIIBZR that is required for pol II transcription in vivo and for different types of basal pol II transcription in vitro. Consistent with a general role in transcription, this TFIIBZR surface is directly involved in the recruitment of pol II to a TATA box-containing promoter. Curiously, although the amino-terminal human TFIIBZR domain can recruit both human pol II and yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) pol II, the yeast TFIIB amino-terminal region recruits yeast pol II but not human pol II. Thus, a critical process in transcription from many different promoters—pol II recruitment—has changed in sequence specificity during eukaryotic evolution.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724. Phone: (516) 367-6909. Fax: (516) 367-6919. E-mail: herr{at}cshl.edu.

Molecular and Cellular Biology, April 2004, p. 2863-2874, Vol. 24, No. 7
0022-538X/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/MCB.24.7.2863-2874.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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