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Abstract: RNA polymerase II backtracking is a well-known phenomenon, but its involvement in gene regulation is yet to be addressed. Structural studies into the backtracked complex, new reactivation mechanisms and genome-wide approaches are shedding some light on this interesting aspect of gene transcription. In this review, we briefly summarise these new findings, comment about some results recently obtained in our laboratory, and propose a new model for the influence of the chromatin context on RNA polymerase II backtracking. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In recent years, the use of genome-wide technologies has revolutionized the study of eukaryotic transcription producing results for thousands of genes at every step of mRNA life. The statistical analyses of the results for a single condition, different conditions, different transcription stages, or even between different techniques, is outlining a totally new landscape of the eukaryotic transcription process. Although most studies have been conducted in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model cell, others have also focused on higher eukaryotes, which can also be comparatively analyzed. The picture which emerges is that transcription is a more variable process than initially suspected, with large differences between genes at each stage of the process, from initiation to mRNA degradation, but with striking similarities for functionally related genes, indicating that all steps are coordinately regulated. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Nuclear Transport and RNA Processing. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]