Work

Cross-species atlas of bacterial RNA 3′ ends reveals termination mechanistic signatures and evolutionary patterns

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Deciphering the generation mechanisms and regulatory roles of bacterial transcript 3' termini requires large-scale 3' terminus data. We repurpose PATHOgenex, an available RNAtag-seq dataset, leveraging RNAtag-seq-specific read patterns associated with 3' termini to generate the "Bacterminome" atlas, a rich resource of species- and condition-dependent transcript 3' termini of 32 bacterial human pathogens grown under 10-12 conditions. Analysis of sequence elements near 3' termini revealed, along with the classical intrinsic terminator, other known and newly detected signatures, highlighting the wealth of termination-associated sequence elements. Intriguingly, orthologous genes with corresponding 3' termini show different termination mechanisms in different bacteria, often matching the dominant mechanism of the respective bacterial species. Analysis of condition-dependent 3' termini revealed some conservation across species, supporting the conjecture that alternative 3' termini can play a role in gene expression regulation. Our resource, available through a user-friendly web server (https://bacterminome.huji.ac.il), provides a platform for studying transcription termination at an unprecedented scope.

Source: Cell Reports

DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2026.118076

Authors: Amir Bar, Yael Altuvia, Michal Eldar, Hanah Margalit

Institution: Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Language: English

Topic: Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology

Subfield: Genetics

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $5,620