Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40712586›Full record

ArticleMolecular cell2025

Human mitochondrial RNA polymerase structures reveal transcription start site and slippage mechanism.

Jiayu Shen, Quinten Goovaerts, Yogeeshwar Ajjugal, Brent De Wijngaert, Kalyan Das, Smita S Patel

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PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Molecular cell, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. The molecular basis of transcription initiation by RNA polymerase II.Nature reviews. Molecular cell biology · 2026
    Review
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Jiayu ShenDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA; Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School of Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.
Quinten GoovaertsMolecular Structural and Translational Virology, Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, Rega Institute for Medical Research, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
Yogeeshwar AjjugalDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.
Brent De WijngaertMolecular Structural and Translational Virology, Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, Rega Institute for Medical Research, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
Kalyan DasMolecular Structural and Translational Virology, Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, Rega Institute for Medical Research, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2T9, Canada. Electronic address: kalyan.das@kuleuven.be.
Smita S PatelDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA. Electronic address: patelss@rutgers.edu.

Funding

Mechanistic studies of nucleic acid enzymes involved in DNA replication, transcription, and innate immunity.R35GM118086 · NIGMS · RUTGERS BIOMEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES · PI SMITA S PATEL · 2016 to 2026
$8.9M
NIGMS NIH HHS R35 GM118086
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Transcription of the human mitochondrial DNA is initiated by POLRMT and initiation factors mitochondrial transcription factor A (TFAM) and mitochondrial transcription factor B2 (TFB2M). We present cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structures of three transcription initiation intermediates (pre-catalytic IC3 [pre-IC3], slipped-IC3, and slipped pre-IC4) catalyzing RNA synthesis by normal and slippage pathways with fully resolved transcription bubbles and RNA transcripts starting from the +1 or -1 position. The structural and biochemical studies reveal mechanisms of promoter melting, start site selection, and slippage synthesis. Promoter melting begins at -4 with base-specific interactions of template -4 and -3 guanines with POLRMT and non-template -1 adenine with TFB2M. The NT-stabilizing loop (K

Indexed as

DNA-Directed RNA PolymerasesDNA, MitochondrialMitochondriaMitochondrial ProteinsTranscription Initiation SiteBasic-Leucine Zipper Transcription FactorsCryoelectron MicroscopyDNA-Binding ProteinsHumansMethyltransferasesModels, MolecularPromoter Regions, GeneticProtein BindingProtein ConformationRNATranscription FactorsBasic-Leucine Zipper Transcription FactorsDNA-Binding ProteinsDNA-Directed RNA PolymerasesDNA, MitochondrialMethyltransferasesMitochondrial ProteinsPOLRMT protein, humanRNATFB2M protein, humanTranscription FactorsTranscription Factor TFIIIBabortive synthesiscryo-EM structurelight strand promoterPOLRMTpromoter meltingslippage synthesisstart site selectionTFAMTFB2Mtranscription initiation

Identifiers

PMID40712586
PMCPMC12313275

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.