Final answer:
Eukaryotic RNA polymerase transcribes exons and introns, but not promoters or terminators. The promoter is where transcription starts and the terminator signals its end.
Step-by-step explanation:
In eukaryotes, RNA polymerase transcribes several components of a gene. This includes exons, which are the coding sequences of DNA that will be expressed and translated into proteins, and introns, non-coding sequences that will be removed during RNA processing.
Other components such as the promoter, a specific DNA sequence where RNA polymerase binds to initiate transcription, and the terminator, a sequence that signals the end of transcription, are also critical for the process but are not transcribed themselves.
The mRNA molecule that provides the code for protein synthesis is created through the process of transcription where RNA polymerase II, in particular, transcribes all of the protein-coding genes.