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Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Using the E1A Minigene Tool to Study mRNA Splicing Changes
Published on: April 22, 2021
The carboxy terminal domain of RNA polymerase II and alternative splicing
Manuel J Muñoz1, Manuel de la Mata, Alberto R Kornblihtt
1Laboratorio de Fisiología y Biología Molecular, Departamento de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Celular, IFIBYNE-CONICET, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires. Ciudad Universitaria, Pabellón 2, (C1428EHA) Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Abstract:
Alternative splicing is controlled by cis-regulatory sequences present in the pre-mRNA and their cognate trans-acting factors, as well as by its coupling to RNA polymerase II (pol II) transcription. A unique feature of this polymerase is the presence of a highly repetitive carboxy terminal domain (CTD), which is subject to multiple regulatory post-translational modifications. CTD phosphorylation events affect the transcriptional properties of pol II and the outcome of co-transcriptional alternative splicing by mediating the effects of splicing factors and by modulating transcription elongation rates. Here, we discuss various examples of involvement of the CTD in alternative splicing regulation as well as the current methodological limitations in deciphering the detailed mechanisms of this process.
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