Why is transcription coupled to translation in bacteria?

Abstract

Active mechanisms exist to prevent transcription that is uncoupled from translation in the protein-coding genes of bacteria, as exemplified by the phenomenon of nonsense polarity. Bacterial transcription-translation coupling may be viewed as one among several co-transcriptional processes, including those for mRNA processing and export in the eukaryotes, that operate in the various life forms to render the nascent transcript unavailable for formation of otherwise deleterious R-loops in the genome.