Understanding the molecular mechanisms of transcriptional bursting

In recent years, it has been experimentally established that transcription, a fundamental biological process that involves the synthesis of messenger RNA molecules from DNA templates, does not proceed continuously as was expected. Rather, it exhibits a distinct dynamic behavior of alternating betwee...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP 2021-10, Vol.23 (38), p.21399-2146
Main Authors: Klindziuk, Alena, Kolomeisky, Anatoly B
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological activity
Bursting
Chemical synthesis
Ribonucleic acid
RNA
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Summary:In recent years, it has been experimentally established that transcription, a fundamental biological process that involves the synthesis of messenger RNA molecules from DNA templates, does not proceed continuously as was expected. Rather, it exhibits a distinct dynamic behavior of alternating between productive phases when RNA molecules are actively synthesized and inactive phases when there is no RNA production at all. The bimodal transcriptional dynamics is now confirmed to be present in most living systems. This phenomenon is known as transcriptional bursting and it attracts significant amounts of attention from researchers in different fields. However, despite multiple experimental and theoretical investigations, the microscopic origin and biological functions of the transcriptional bursting remain unclear. Here we discuss the recent developments in uncovering the underlying molecular mechanisms of transcriptional bursting and our current understanding of them. Our analysis presents a physicochemical view of the processes that govern transcriptional bursting in living cells. Microscopic origins of transcriptional bursting phenomena are discussed from the physical-chemical point of view.
ISSN:1463-9076
1463-9084
DOI:10.1039/d1cp03665c