The Mediator complex: a central integrator of transcription

RNA polymerase II (Pol II) is globally regulated by Mediator, a large, conformationally flexible protein complex with a variable subunit composition. These biochemical characteristics are fundamental for the ability of Mediator to control processes involved in transcription, including the organization of chromatin architecture and the regulation of Pol II pre-initiation, initiation, re-initiation, pausing and elongation. The RNA polymerase II (Pol II) enzyme transcribes all protein-coding and most non-coding RNA genes and is globally regulated by Mediator — a large, conformationally flexible protein complex with a variable subunit composition (for example, a four-subunit cyclin-dependent kinase 8 module can reversibly associate with it). These biochemical characteristics are fundamentally important for Mediator's ability to control various processes that are important for transcription, including the organization of chromatin architecture and the regulation of Pol II pre-initiation, initiation, re-initiation, pausing and elongation. Although Mediator exists in all eukaryotes, a variety of Mediator functions seem to be specific to metazoans, which is indicative of more diverse regulatory requirements.