Structure and function of the archaeal transcription factor C34/TFEbeta: The structural and functional characterisation of an archaeal homologue of the general transcription factor TFIIEbeta and the RNA polymerase III subunit C34 will provide insight into

古菌转录因子 C34/TFEbeta 的结构和功能：通用转录因子 TFIIEbeta 和 RNA 聚合酶 III 亚基 C34 的古菌同源物的结构和功能特征将有助于深入了解

• 批准号: 203088596
• 负责人: Dr. Fabian Blombach
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Institute of Structural and Molecular Biology
• 依托单位国家: 德国
• 项目类别: Research Fellowships
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 德国
• 起止时间: 2010-12-31 至 2013-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/203088596?language=en
• 关键词: Structure; function; archaeal; transcription; factor

A major event in the early evolution of cellular life on Earth has been its branching into three domains with fundamental differences concerning the structural and functional organization of cells: Bacteria, Archaea and Eukaryotes (yeast, plants, animals etc.). In all cellular life, RNA polymerases are protein complexes responsible for the first step in gene expression, the transcription of DNA to RNA. In Eukaryotes, different types of RNA polymerases transcribe different classes of genes. Each of the different types of RNA polymerases is recruited to its target genes by a specific set of transcription inititiation factor proteins. Archaea and Bacteria use a single RNA polymerase for all genes. Notably, the archaeal RNA polymerase and its general transcription factors resemble the eukaryotic RNA polymerases II and III with their basic sets of general transcription factors. Studies on transcription in Archaea have therefore provided fundamental insight on the process of transcription and how it remained conserved during the course of evolution. I have recently identified the archaeal protein that forms the counterpart to eukaryotic TFIIEbeta and C34, two related proteins with functions in transcription initiation of eukaryotic RNA polymerases II and III, respectively. The archaeal C34/TFEbeta represents a „missing link“ in the evolutionary history of archaeal and eukaryotic transcription machineries. The proposed project investigates the biological function of archaeal C34/TFEbeta, especially its role in transcription initiation. In addition, I will determine the interaction network that the archaeal C34/TFEbeta protein forms with other components of the transcription apparatus. The overall goal is to reveal structural and functional homologies between the archaeal C34/TFEbeta protein and its eukaryotic counterparts. The proposed project will advance our understanding of the early evolution of RNA polymerases and transcription systems in Archaea and Eukaryotes.

地球上细胞生命早期进化的一个重大事件是，它分为三个领域，在细胞的结构和功能组织方面存在根本差异：细菌、古细菌和真核生物（酵母、植物、动物等）。在所有细胞生命中，RNA聚合酶是一种蛋白质复合物，负责基因表达的第一步，即DNA转录为RNA。在真核生物中，不同类型的RNA聚合酶转录不同种类的基因。每一种不同类型的RNA聚合酶都是通过一组特定的转录启动因子蛋白被招募到它的靶基因上的。古生菌和细菌对所有的基因使用单一的RNA聚合酶。值得注意的是，古细菌RNA聚合酶及其一般转录因子与真核生物RNA聚合酶II和III的基本通用转录因子相似。因此，对古细菌转录的研究为转录过程及其在进化过程中如何保持保守提供了基本的见解。我最近发现了与真核生物TFIIEbeta和C34形成对应物的古细菌蛋白，这两种相关蛋白分别在真核生物RNA聚合酶II和III的转录起始中起作用。古细菌C34/TFEbeta代表了古细菌和真核生物转录机制进化史上的“缺失环节”。本项目拟研究古细菌C34/TFEbeta的生物学功能，特别是其在转录起始中的作用。此外，我将确定古菌C34/TFEbeta蛋白与转录装置的其他组分形成的相互作用网络。总体目标是揭示古生菌C34/TFEbeta蛋白与其真核生物对应物之间的结构和功能同源性。该项目将促进我们对古细菌和真核生物中RNA聚合酶和转录系统的早期进化的理解。