K. Severinov et al., THE BETA-SUBUNIT RIF-CLUSTER-I IS ONLY ANGSTROMS AWAY FROM THE ACTIVE-CENTER OF ESCHERICHIA-COLI RNA-POLYMERASE, The Journal of biological chemistry, 270(49), 1995, pp. 29428-29432
Ribonucleotide analogs bound in the initiating site of Escherichia col
i RNA polymerase-promoter complex were cross-linked to the beta subuni
t. Using limited proteolysis and chemical degradation, the cross-link
was mapped to a segment of beta between amino acids Val(516) and Arg(5
40). This region (Rif-cluster I) is known to harbor many rifampicin-re
sistant (Rif(R)) mutations. The results demonstrate that Rif-cluster I
is part of the ''5'-face'' of the active center and provide structura
l basis for the long-known effects of Rif(R) mutations on transcriptio
n initiation, elongation, and termination.