The findings suggest that the efficiency with which the RNA pol I complex assembles all its subunits--which is controlled by a dynamic interplay of polymerase and non-polymerase transcription factors-- plays a significant role in determining when a given gene is turned on. While the group looked only at RNA polymerase I, other research suggests that the phenomena they observed may represent a general mechanism for regulating gene transcription.
The team that led this research included Tom Misteli, Ph.D., head of the Cell Biology of Genomes Group within the Laboratory of Receptor Biology and Gene Expression at NCI's Center for Cancer Research, Stan Gorski, Ph.D., and Sara Snyder, Ph.D.
Gorski SA, Snyder SK, John S, Grummt I, and Misteli T. Modulation of RNA polymerase assembly dynamics in transcriptional regulation. Molecular Cell, Volume 30, Issue 4, May 23, 2008.
For more information on Dr. Misteli's laboratory, please go to http://ccr.nci.nih.gov/staff/staff.asp?profileid=5819.
For more information about cancer, please visit the NCI Web site at http://www.cancer.gov, or call NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).