From owner-metabolic-reg@net.bio.net Mon Dec 13 22:00:00 1993
Path: biosci!bcm!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!sgiblab!sgigate.sgi.com!olivea!koriel!lll-winken.llnl.gov!sundance.llnl.gov!fastrac.llnl.gov!usenet.ee.pdx.edu!cs.uoregon.edu!news.uoregon.edu!netnews.nwnet.net!news.u.washington.edu!stein2.u.washington.edu!venk
From: venk@stein2.u.washington.edu (Venkatesh Murthy)
Newsgroups: bionet.info-theory
Subject: RNA polymerase sliding along DNA
Date: 14 Dec 1993 00:21:24 GMT
Organization: University of Washington, Seattle
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Message-ID: <2ej0u4$dua@news.u.washington.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: stein.u.washington.edu


Here's the abstract of an article I saw in Science.  Haven't read it yet,
only browsed through it.  But it looks quite relavant to this news group.

Visualization of single molecules of RNA polymerase sliding along DNA.
H. Kabata, O. Kurosawa, I. Arai, M. Washizu, S.A. Margarson, E.E. Glass
and N. Shimamoto.  Science, 262:1561. (3 Dec 1993)

ABSTRACT:
Transcription requires that RNA polymerase binds to promoters buried in
nonspecific sites on DNA.  The search for promoters may be facilitated if
the polymerase slides along the molecule of DNA.  Single molecules of E.
coli RNA polymerase were visualized and their movements on immobilized 
bacteriophage \lambda and T7 DNAs were examined.  Deviating from drifts
by bulk flow, about 40 percent of the enzyme molecules moved along the
extended DNA.  The results provide direct evidence for sliding as a
mechanism for relocation of the enzyme on DNA.

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Hope there are people who have/will read this paper will contribute their
thoughts.  As for me, I'm back to writing my thesis!  

-venki murthy
Physiology & Biophysics
SJ-40 
Univ. of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195
(venk@u.washington.edu)

.