RNA polymerase II (Pol II) pauses downstream of the transcription initiation site before beginning productive elongation. This pause is a key component of metazoan gene expression regulation. Some promoters have a strong disposition for Pol II pausing and often mediate faster, more synchronous changes in expression. This requires multiple rounds of transcription and thus cannot rely solely on pause release. However, it is unclear how pausing affects the initiation of new transcripts during consecutive rounds of transcription. Using our recently developed ChIP-nexus method, we find that Pol II pausing inhibits new initiation. We propose that paused Pol II helps prevent new initiation between transcription bursts, which may reduce noise.

中文翻译：

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暂停的RNA聚合酶II抑制新的转录起始

RNA聚合酶II（Pol II）在开始生产性延伸之前在转录起始位点的下游暂停。这种暂停是后生动物基因表达调控的关键组成部分。一些启动子对Pol II暂停有强烈的倾向，并经常介导更快，更同步的表达变化。这需要多轮转录，因此不能仅依靠暂停释放。但是，目前尚不清楚在连续的几轮转录过程中，暂停如何影响新转录本的启动。使用我们最近开发的ChIP-nexus方法，我们发现Pol II暂停可抑制新的启动。我们建议暂停的Pol II有助于防止转录突发之间的新启动，从而可以减少噪音。