Despite the fundamental importance of transcription, a comprehensive analysis of RNA polymerase (RNAP) behavior and its role in the nucleoid organization in vivo is lacking. Here, we used superresolution microscopy to study the localization and dynamics of the transcription machinery and DNA in live bacterial cells, at both the single-molecule and the population level. We used photoactivated single-molecule tracking to discriminate between mobile RNAPs and RNAPs specifically bound to DNA, either on promoters or transcribed genes. Mobile RNAPs can explore the whole nucleoid while searching for promoters, and spend 85% of their search time in nonspecific interactions with DNA. On the other hand, the distribution of specifically bound RNAPs shows that low levels of transcription can occur throughout the nucleoid. Further, clustering analysis and 3D structured illumination microscopy (SIM) show that dense clusters of transcribing RNAPs form almost exclusively at the nucleoid periphery. Treatment with rifampicin shows that active transcription is necessary for maintaining this spatial organization. In faster growth conditions, the fraction of transcribing RNAPs increases, as well as their clustering. Under these conditions, we observed dramatic phase separation between the densest clusters of RNAPs and the densest regions of the nucleoid. These findings show that transcription can cause spatial reorganization of the nucleoid, with movement of gene loci out of the bulk of DNA as levels of transcription increase. This work provides a global view of the organization of RNA polymerase and transcription in living cells.RNA polymerase | transcription | superresolution | single-molecule tracking | protein-DNA interactions

Cellular DNA damage is reversed by balanced repair pathways that avoid accumulation of toxic intermediates. Despite their importance, the organization of DNA repair pathways and the function of repair enzymes in vivo have remained unclear because of the inability to directly observe individual reactions in living cells. Here, we used photoactivation, localization, and tracking in live Escherichia coli to directly visualize single fluorescent labeled DNA polymerase I (Pol) and ligase (Lig) molecules searching for DNA gaps and nicks, performing transient reactions, and releasing their products. Our general approach provides enzymatic rates and copy numbers, substrate-search times, diffusion characteristics, and the spatial distribution of reaction sites, at the single-cell level, all in one measurement. Single repair events last 2.1 s (Pol) and 2.5 s (Lig), respectively. Pol and Lig activities increased fivefold over the basal level within minutes of DNA methylation damage; their rates were limited by upstream base excision repair pathway steps. Pol and Lig spent >80% of their time searching for free substrates, thereby minimizing both the number and lifetime of toxic repair intermediates. We integrated these single-molecule observations to generate a quantitative, systems-level description of a model repair pathway in vivo.single-molecule tracking | super-resolution microscopy | DNA damage response | protein-DNA interaction | cytosolic diffusion A ll cellular organisms rely on complex DNA repair mechanisms for faithful chromosome replication and maintenance of their genome integrity (1). The variety of DNA lesions requires modular repair pathways that carry out damage recognition, damage removal, repair synthesis, and ligation in sequential steps catalyzed by a series of enzymes. However, all repair pathway steps need to be precisely balanced to avoid accumulation of DNA intermediates that are typically more mutagenic and toxic than the original lesion (2). Rapid processing of gapped and nicked intermediates is particularly crucial (3) because they provoke lethal double-strand breaks upon encountering replication forks (4); a single such break can lead to chromosome loss and cell death.Despite extensive genetic, biochemical, and biophysical studies (1), the molecular organization of DNA repair in vivo remains unclear. Most of our mechanistic understanding relies on in vitro ensemble studies, which cannot replicate the cellular environment and stochastic nature of chemical reactions. By avoiding ensembleaveraging, single-molecule experiments have revolutionized the study of protein-DNA interactions in vitro, but extension of these powerful concepts to DNA repair measurements in living cells remains an open goal. Early in vivo work focused on the mean behavior of cell populations and could not examine functionally important heterogeneity, such as the variation in protein copy numbers between cells and over time (5, 6). Such variation can lead to different repair rates across genetically identical cells and may dera...

Transcription factors control the expression of genes by binding to specific sites in DNA and repressing or activating transcription in response to stimuli. The lac repressor (LacI) is a well characterized transcription factor that regulates the ability of bacterial cells to uptake and metabolize lactose. Here, we study the intracellular mobility and spatial distribution of LacI in live bacteria using photoactivated localization microscopy combined with single-particle tracking. Since we track single LacI molecules in live cells by stochastically photoactivating and observing fluorescent proteins individually, there are no limitations on the copy number of the protein under study; as a result, we were able to study the behavior of LacI in bacterial strains containing the natural copy numbers (∼40 monomers), as well as in strains with much higher copy numbers due to LacI overexpression. Our results allowed us to determine the relative abundance of specific, near-specific, and non-specific DNA binding modes of LacI in vivo, showing that all these modes are operational inside living cells. Further, we examined the spatial distribution of LacI in live cells, confirming its specific binding to lac operator regions on the chromosome; we also showed that mobile LacI molecules explore the bacterial nucleoid in a way similar to exploration by other DNA-binding proteins. Our work also provides an example of applying tracking photoactivated localization microscopy to studies of low-copy-number proteins in living bacteria.

a b s t r a c tIn vivo single-molecule experiments offer new perspectives on the behaviour of DNA binding proteins, from the molecular level to the length scale of whole bacterial cells. With technological advances in instrumentation and data analysis, fluorescence microscopy can detect single molecules in live cells, opening the doors to directly follow individual proteins binding to DNA in real time. In this review, we describe key technical considerations for implementing in vivo single-molecule fluorescence microscopy. We discuss how single-molecule tracking and quantitative super-resolution microscopy can be adapted to extract DNA binding kinetics, spatial distributions, and copy numbers of proteins, as well as stoichiometries of protein complexes. We highlight experiments which have exploited these techniques to answer important questions in the field of bacterial gene regulation and transcription, as well as chromosome replication, organisation and repair. Together, these studies demonstrate how single-molecule imaging is transforming our understanding of DNA-binding proteins in cells.

Corrigendum to the second paragraph in Section 5.3 -the amended paragraph should read as follows:To address the extent to which translation and transcription are coupled in E. coli, PALM images were taken of RNAP and the ribosomal protein S2 [79]. The spatial distributions showed clear segregation between ribosomes and RNAP, with only 15% of ribosomes found within the nucleoid (Fig. 4C). Both RNAP and ribosome distributions extended to the cell membrane indicating that transertion could be taking place; however, there appeared to be no enrichment of RNAP at the nucleoid periphery, suggesting that most translation is not coupled with transcription. In rich media conditions, conventional microscopy images suggested that the densest areas of RNAP are located in relatively low density areas of the nucleoid, leading to the hypothesis that transcription frequently happens on loops of DNA projecting out from the dense centre of the nucleoid [76]. j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w . F E B S L e t t e r s . o r g