DNA

TRANSCRIPTION
Important Process:
• Transcription is the first step in gene expression. It involves copying a gene's
DNA sequence to make an RNA molecule.

• Transcription is performed by enzymes called RNA polymerases, which link

nucleotides to form an RNA strand (using a DNA strand as a template).

• Transcription has three stages: initiation, elongation, and termination.

• In eukaryotes, RNA molecules must be processed after transcription: they

are spliced and have a 5' cap and poly-A tail put on their ends.

• Transcription is controlled separately for each gene in your genome.

Transcription is the first step in gene expression (Opens in a new window), in which information from a gene
is used to construct a functional product such as a protein. The goal of transcription is to make a RNA copy of
a gene's DNA sequence.
The main enzyme involved in transcription is RNA polymerase, which uses a single-stranded DNA template to
synthesize a complementary strand of RNA. Specifically, RNA polymerase builds an RNA strand in the 5' to 3'
direction, adding each new nucleotide to the 3' end of the strand.
 Stages of transcription

Initiation
Elongation
Termination
Stages of transcription In the final part you find
another zone called:
initiation - elongation - termination. Terminator region

RNA polymerase binds to a

sequence of DNA called
the promoter, found near the
beginning of a gene. Each gene
has its own promoter. Once bound,
RNA polymerase separates the
DNA strands, providing the single-
stranded template needed for
transcription.
 In the final part you find
another zone called:
RNA Polymerase (gray lines) Terminator region
 Stages of transcription
initiation - elongation - termination.

One strand of DNA, the template

strand, acts as a template for RNA
polymerase. As it "reads" this
template one base at a time, the
polymerase builds an RNA molecule
out of complementary nucleotides,
making a chain that grows from 5' to
3’.
The RNA transcript carries the same
information as the non-template
strand of DNA, but it contains the
base uracil (U) instead of thymine (T).
 This strand is the gene but to
replicate this gene in a RNA
use the opposite strand

This one is the template, “El

Look the change: The
molde” to make the other
one. RNA poly change
every (T) for a (U)
Stages of transcription
initiation - elongation - termination.

Sequences called terminators signal that the RNA transcript is complete. Once they
are transcribed, they cause the transcript to be released from the RNA polymerase.
An example of a termination mechanism involving formation of a hairpin in the RNA
is shown below.
RNA maturation

Cap
Tail
Splicing
RNA maturation
RNA post-modifications

Cap – Tail - Splicing

The 5' cap has four main functions:

Regulate export from the nucleus.

Prevent degradation by exonucleases.
Drive translation.
Drive cleavage of introns proximal to 5'.
RNA maturation
RNA post-modifications

Cap – Tail - Splicing

The poly(a) tail is important for nuclear export and mRNA stability.
The tail is shortened over time, and when it is too short, the
mRNA is enzymatically degraded.
RNA maturation In this process, parts of the pre-mRNA (called introns) are
RNA post-modifications chopped out, and the remaining pieces (called exons) are stuck
back together.
Cap – Tail - Splicing