Phosphorylated Carboxy Terminal Domain Interacting Factor 1 (PCIF1)

Phosphorylation of the carboxy-terminal domain (CTD) of RNA polymerase II (RNAP II) largest subunit has an important role in transcription elongation and in coupling transcription to pre-mRNA processing. PCIF1 is composed of 704 amino acids. The WW domain of PCIF1 can directly and preferentially bind to the phosphorylated CTD compared to the unphosphorylated CTD. PCIF1 binds to the hyperphosphorylated RNAP II (RNAP IIO) in vitro and in vivo. Double immunofluorescence labeling in HeLa cells demonstrated that PCIF1 and endogenous RNAP IIO are co-localized in the cell nucleus. Thus, PCIF1 may play a role in mRNA synthesis by modulating RNAP IIO activity.The coexpression of PCIF1 with PDX-1 in beta cells and the ability of PCIF1 to repress PDX-1 transactivation suggest that modulation of PDX-1 function by PCIF1 may regulate normal beta cell differentiation.