In this video, we're going to talk about the third and final step of transcription, which is the termination of transcription. Termination refers to putting something to an end. The termination of transcription is the process that results in the end of transcription to produce an RNA molecule. It turns out that prokaryotes and eukaryotes differ in the way that they terminate transcription. Specifically, in eukaryotes, eukaryotic termination forms a premature RNA molecule.
This premature RNA molecule is not the final molecule in eukaryotic organisms. The premature RNA molecule in eukaryotic organisms requires further modification through RNA processing, which we'll get to talk more about as we move forward in our course. However, in prokaryotes, the RNA molecule formed is not premature and does not require RNA processing. The premature RNA is only found in eukaryotic organisms. When looking at our image below, at the termination of transcription, what you'll notice is that the RNA polymerase is reaching this terminator sequence here, and the terminator sequence on the DNA initiates the process of termination.
Ultimately, termination results in the RNA polymerase being released and the RNA molecule being released. In prokaryotic organisms, the RNA molecule is ready for translation immediately. However, in eukaryotic organisms, the RNA is a premature RNA, a pre-mRNA. This is not going to be the final version of the RNA in eukaryotic organisms. This RNA would have to undergo RNA processing in eukaryotic organisms before translation can take place.
Again, this is only applicable for eukaryotes, not for prokaryotes. This concludes our brief introduction to the termination of transcription, and we'll be able to get some practice applying these concepts as we move forward in our course. I'll see you all in our next video.