Biology / Unit 6 Bio 1259 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Prokaryotic RNA Polymerase and the Promoter
Captions available
The idea
Prokaryotic RNA polymerase binds a promoter, a DNA sequence upstream of a gene, to begin transcribing that gene into RNA.
In practice
A single RNA polymerase transcribes every gene in a bacterium, guided to each gene's promoter in turn.
Where people slip
A promoter's sequence determines how often its gene is transcribed — RNA polymerase itself does not vary between different genes.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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