Description
The RPB8 subunit is present in all three types of eukaryotic RNA polymerases and is highly conserved during evolution. It is an essential subunit required for the transcription of nuclear genes. Rpb8 interacts with the largest subunit Rpb1, and with Rpb3 and Rpb11, two smaller subunits. hRPB8 interacts with single-stranded DNA nonspecifically. When DNA is damaged in cells, the breast and ovarian tumor suppressor BRCA1 ubiquitinates RPB8, which may relate with the BRCA1-dependent cell survival