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B Sugden

Publications and source records attributed to B Sugden.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Rep*: a viral element that can partially replace the origin of plasmid DNA synthesis of Epstein-Barr virus.

Replication of the Epstein-Barr viral (EBV) genome occurs once per cell cycle during latent infection. Similarly, plasmids containing EBV's plasmid origin of replication, oriP, are replicated once per cell cycle. Replication from oriP requires EBV nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA-1) in trans; however, its contributions to this replication are unknown. oriP contains 24 EBNA-1 binding sites; 20 are located within the family of repeats, and 4 are found within the dyad symmetry element. The site of initiation of DNA replication within oriP is at or near the dyad symmetry element. We have identified a plasmid that contains the family of repeats but lacks the dyad symmetry element whose replication can be detected for a limited number of cell cycles. The detection of short-term replication of this plasmid requires EBNA-1 and can be inhibited by a dominant-negative inhibitor of EBNA-1. We have identified two regions within this plasmid which can independently contribute to this replication in the absence of the dyad symmetry element of oriP. One region contains native EBV sequences within the BamHI C fragment of the B95-8 genome of EBV; the other contains sequences within the simian virus 40 genome. We have mapped the region contributing to replication within the EBV sequences to a 298-bp fragment, Rep*. Plasmids which contain three copies of Rep* plus the family of repeats support replication more efficiently than those with one copy, consistent with a stochastic model for the initiation of DNA synthesis. Plasmids with three copies of Rep* also support long-term replication in the presence of EBNA-1. These observations together indicate that the latent origin of replication of EBV is more complex than formerly appreciated; it is a multicomponent origin of which the dyad symmetry element is one efficient component. The experimental approach described here could be used to identify eukaryotic sequences which mediate DNA synthesis, albeit inefficiently.

Cell Line↗

Studies on the mechanism of DNA linking by Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen 1.

Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA1) can both bind to and link DNA. Dimers of EBNA1 bind specific sites, two clusters of which, the FR and DS, comprise the necessary cis-acting elements of the Epstein-Barr viral origin of plasmid replication. EBNA1-dimers can link FR and DS, looping out the intervening DNA. EBNA1 can also intermolecularly link DNAs to which it binds. Residues of EBNA1 that can mediate linking have been mapped to at least three, non-overlapping domains. These domains, when fused to the dimerization and DNA-binding domain of GAL4, can self-associate and thereby link DNAs bound site specifically by GAL4. Two disparate mechanisms could underlie self-association of linking domains: 1) linking domains could associate with other linking domains directly, or 2) linking domains could associate indirectly by binding to a common nucleic acid intermediate. We have found that EBNA1 can link DNA by each of these mechanisms, however, the linking domains associate directly with a greater apparent affinity than through a nonspecific nucleic acid intermediate.

Binding Sites↗

Dominant-negative inhibitors of EBNA-1 of Epstein-Barr virus.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA-1) is required in trans to support replication of the EBV genome once per cell cycle via the latent origin of replication, oriP. EBNA-1 can also activate transcription on binding to the family of repeats of oriP to enhance some heterologous as well as native EBV promoters. We have made and screened derivatives of EBNA-1 for the ability to act as inhibitors of wild-type EBNA-1. These derivatives lack the linking or the retention functions of EBNA-1 and were analyzed for the residual ability to activate transcription and replication. We have identified derivatives of EBNA-1 that can inhibit up to 98% of wild-type EBNA-1's activities. We have also identified one derivative of EBNA-1 with only two of EBNA-1's three linking domains which can support transcription and replication inefficiently.

DNA Replication↗

Characterization of LMP-1's association with TRAF1, TRAF2, and TRAF3.

The latent membrane protein 1 (LMP-1) of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) contributes to the immortalizing activity of EBV in primary, human B lymphocytes. LMP-1 is targeted to the plasma membrane, where it influences signaling pathways of infected cells. LMP-1 has been found to associate with members of the tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor (TRAF) family of proteins. As with LMP-1, the TRAF molecules have been shown to participate in cell signaling pathways. We have characterized and mapped in detail a region of LMP-1 that associates with TRAF1, TRAF2, and TRAF3. TRAF3 alone associates with LMP-1 in a yeast two-hybrid assay, whereas all three TRAF molecules associate with LMP-1 under various conditions when they are assayed in extracts of human cells. TRAF1, TRAF2, and TRAF3 appear to associate independently with LMP-1 but bind an overlapping target site. TRAF3 associates with LMP-1 most avidly and can compete with TRAF1 and TRAF2 for binding to LMP-1. TRAF2 associates with truncated derivatives of the carboxy terminus of LMP-1 more efficiently than with the intact terminus, indicating that LMP-1's conformation may regulate its association with TRAF2. Finally, point mutations that decrease LMP-1's association with the three TRAF molecules to 3 to 20% of wild-type levels do not detectably affect otherwise intact LMP-1's induction of NF-kappaB activity. Therefore, these associations are not necessary for the majority of intact LMP-1's induction of this signaling pathway.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Immortalization of human B lymphocytes by a plasmid containing 71 kilobase pairs of Epstein-Barr virus DNA.

We have assembled derivatives of Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) that include 71 kbp of noncontiguous DNA sequences cloned into a prokaryotic F-factor plasmid. These mini-EBVs, when introduced into an EBV-containing lymphoblastoid cell, can be packaged by the endogenous helper virus. One such mini-EBV was found to have a single C residue deleted from its EBNA3a open reading frame. When packaged, this mini-EBV initiates proliferation of infected primary human B lymphocytes only in conjunction with a complementing helper virus. Proliferation of the infected cells, however, was maintained either alone by the mini-EBV containing the mutated EBNA3a open reading frame or alone by its derivative in which the EBNA3a open reading frame had been healed of its lesion by recombination with the helper virus. The mini-EBV with a wild-type EBNA3a open reading frame when packaged alone can both initiate and maintain proliferation upon infection of primary human B lymphocytes. These findings identify 41% of EBV DNA which is sufficient to immortalize primary human B lymphocytes and provide an assay to distinguish virus contributions to initiation or maintenance of cell proliferation or both. They also identify EBNA3a as a transforming gene, which contributes primarily to the initiation of cell proliferation.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Multiple regions within EBNA1 can link DNAs.

Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA1) can bind specifically to two clusters of sites within the Epstein-Barr virus plasmid origin of DNA replication (oriP). EBNA1 activates DNA replication mediated by oriP and can also activate transcription and retain DNA in cells when bound site specifically. EBNA1 bound to oriP physically links the two clusters of EBNA1-binding sites, resulting in loop formation by the intervening DNA. To elucidate the contribution of DNA linking by EBNA1 to its biological activities, we identified regions within it that can independently link DNAs to which they are bound. An electrophoretic mobility shift assay was used to detect this activity. Proteins which link DNA aggregate that DNA into large lattices. Proteins which cannot link DNA but still bind to DNA retard the mobility of that DNA but do not cause it to form lattices. Amino-terminal truncations were used to map the amino-terminal limit of a minimal DNA-linking domain approximately to amino acid 372 of EBNA1. To map the carboxy-terminal limit of this minimal domain, fusion proteins containing the DNA-binding domain of GAL4 and fragments of EBNA1 were generated and studied. This approach identified the carboxy-terminal limit of this minimal domain to be approximately amino acid 391 and verified its amino-terminal limit. Internal deletions within a truncated EBNA1 derivative verified the importance of this region. Two additional fragments of EBNA1, each of which independently conferred DNA-linking activity on the domain of GAL4 which binds DNA, were identified within amino acids 54 to 89 and amino acids 331 to 361. Therefore, EBNA1 contains at least three regions that can act independently to link DNAs and that may act in concert within intact EBNA1.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Plasmid maintenance of derivatives of oriP of Epstein-Barr virus.

oriP is the origin of plasmid replication of Epstein-Barr virus. Replication from oriP requires both the cis-acting elements (the family of repeats and the dyad symmetry element) and the viral origin-binding protein, EBNA-1. The ability of plasmids containing oriP to be maintained stably in EBNA-1-positive cells reflects the efficiency both of their replication and of their segregation each cell cycle. The efficiency of plasmid maintenance was determined for plasmids containing derivatives of oriP with one copy of the dyad symmetry element and two copies of the family of repeats by measuring the rate at which they were lost from cells in the absence of selection. These measurements demonstrated that plasmids with derivatives of oriP with two copies of the family of repeats in one orientation are maintained only slightly less efficiently than is wild-type oriP. To determine whether plasmid maintenance could be affected by reinitiation at the dyad symmetry element (T. A. Gahn and C. L. Schildkraut, Cell 58:527-535, 1989), plasmids containing derivatives of oriP with two copies of the dyad symmetry element and one copy of the family of repeats were compared with plasmids containing wild-type oriP in EBNA-1-positive cells. These measurements showed that plasmids containing a derivative of oriP with two copies of the dyad symmetry element are maintained as efficiently as is wild-type oriP and are not amplified relative to wild-type oriP. These observations indicate that the trans-acting factors that regulate DNA to replicate once per S phase are insensitive to multiple cis-acting regulatory sites within a replicon.

DNA Replication↗

An EBNA-1-dependent enhancer acts from a distance of 10 kilobase pairs to increase expression of the Epstein-Barr virus LMP gene.

Upon infection of human B lymphocytes, the 172-kbp Epstein-Barr virus genome forms a covalently closed circle via its terminal repeats. This event brings all of the promoters that control expression of the latent gene products, and the viral origin of plasmid replication, oriP, within a 20-kbp stretch of contiguous DNA. We have found that the EBNA-1-dependent transcriptional enhancer FR, located in oriP, increased the expression of a tagged viral oncogene encoding the latent membrane protein (LMP) up to 200-fold in normal Epstein-Barr virus-positive cells. The effect of FR was exerted across 10 kbp of viral DNA that spans the circularized ends of the viral genome. Enhancement of the tagged LMP gene by FR/EBNA-1 did not require the EBNA-2-responsive element.

Antigens, Viral↗

Stimulation of NF-kappa B-mediated transcription by mutant derivatives of the latent membrane protein of Epstein-Barr virus.

The latent membrane protein (LMP) of Epstein-Barr virus contributes to the immortalizing activity of the virus in primary, human B lymphocytes, but its mechanism of function is unknown. LMP is expressed at the plasma membrane and may act by influencing the signalling pathways of infected cells. LMP increases transcription of reporter plasmids that are responsive to members of the NF-kappa B/Rel family of transcription factors (M.-L. Hammarskjold and M. C. Simurda, J. Virol. 66:6496-6501, 1992, and A. Krikos, C. D. Laherty, and V. M. Dixit, J. Biol. Chem. 267:17971-17976, 1992). We measured the stimulation of the activity of a reporter plasmid by LMP in Jurkat and 293 cells in transfection experiments. Expression of LMP stimulated plasmids that contained kappa B enhancer elements but not plasmids that lacked the elements. In 293 cells, expression of the NF-kappa B inhibitor, I kappa B-alpha, reduced the stimulatory activity of LMP. We used deletional analysis to map the domains of LMP that are required for its activity in 293 cells. Wild-type LMP stimulated NF-kappa B by a factor of 20 to 30, while mutant derivatives of LMP that lack oncogenic activity stimulated NF-kappa B by a factor of 3. The multiple membrane-spanning segments together with the carboxy-terminal 55 amino acid residues of LMP were required for its maximal stimulatory function. Residues within its cytoplasmic amino terminus were not required for LMP's stimulation of NF-kappa B. We tested also for stimulation of NF-kappa B activity in cell lines known to support phenotypic changes mediated by expression of LMP. LMP stimulated little NF-kappa B activity in HEp2 cells and no detectable NF-kappa B activity in BALB/3T3 cells. The LMP stimulation of NF-kappa B factors that occurs in some cell lines provides a useful and biochemically tractable assay for determining the function of LMP.

3T3 Cells↗

Optimal lengths for DNAs encapsidated by Epstein-Barr virus.

We measured the efficiency of DNA packaging by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) as a function of the length of the DNA being packaged. Plasmids that contain oriP (the origin of latent EBV DNA replication), oriLyt (the origin of lytic EBV DNA replication), the viral terminal repeats (necessary for cleavage and packaging by EBV), and various lengths of bacteriophage lambda DNA were introduced into EBV-positive cells. Upon induction of the resident EBV's lytic phase, introduced plasmids replicated as concatemers and were packaged. Plasmid-derived concatemers of DNA with certain lengths were found to predominate in isolated virion particles. We measured the distribution of lengths of plasmid concatemers found within cells supporting the lytic phase of the viral life cycle and found that this distribution differed from the distribution of lengths of concatemers found in mature virion particles. This finding indicates that the DNA packaged into mature virions represents a selected subset of those present in the cell during packaging. These observations together indicate that the length of DNA affects the efficiency with which that DNA is packaged by EBV. Finally, we measured the length of the packaged B95-8 viral DNA and found it to be approximately 165 kbp, or 10 kbp shorter than the originally predicted size for B95-8 based on its sequence. Together with the results of other studies, these findings indicate that the packaging of DNAs by EBV is dependent on two imprecisely recognized elements: the viral terminal repeats and the length of the DNA being packaged by the virus.

Animals↗

Retention of plasmid DNA in mammalian cells is enhanced by binding of the Epstein-Barr virus replication protein EBNA1.

The capacity to bind the Epstein-Barr viral protein EBNA1 increases the retention of the plasmid in dividing cells. This retention requires binding of multiple EBNA1 molecules for function, although significant retention activity is seen with fewer EBNA1 binding sites than are required to activate replication or transcription. The regions of EBNA1 that are required for increased plasmid retention overlap with those required for activation of transcription and replication. The similarities in traits of EBNA1 that are required for support of DNA replication and retention of plasmid DNA indicate that both may be mediated by interactions with an overlapping set of cellular proteins.

Antigens, Viral↗

Marked, transient inhibition of expression of the Epstein-Barr virus latent membrane protein gene in Burkitt's lymphoma cell lines by electroporation.

The Raji, EB1, and EB2 cell lines are derived from Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-positive Burkitt's lymphomas. EBV gene products associated with viral latency, including latent membrane protein (LMP) and Epstein-Barr nuclear antigen 2 (EBNA-2), are expressed in these cell lines. We have found that transfection of all three of these cell lines by electroporation in both the presence and the absence of foreign DNA resulted in a marked decrease in expression of the endogenous EBV gene encoding LMP. An analysis of this response in Raji cells revealed that the level of RNA of this gene was decreased transiently and returned to normal levels by 7 days after transfection. The level of LMP protein was also reduced after transfection. No difference in survival was detected in electroporated versus unperturbed Raji cells. The level of mRNA encoding a modulator of the LMP gene, EBNA-2, was unchanged by electroporation. However, the level of another EBV transcript, BHLF-I, was reduced. The effect of electroporation could not be attributed to flux of Ca2+, Na+, K+, or Cl- ions across the plasma membrane. Expression of LMP in several lymphoblastoid cell lines was unaffected by electroporation.

Anions↗

Latent membrane protein of Epstein-Barr virus induces cellular phenotypes independently of expression of Bcl-2.

The stable expression of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) latent membrane protein (LMP) in certain EBV-negative Burkitt's lymphoma cell lines correlates with an increased expression of the oncogene Bcl-2 (S. Henderson, M. Rowe, C. Gregory, D. Croom-Carter, F. Wang, R. Longnecker, E. Kieff, and A. Rickinson, Cell 65:1107-1115, 1991). This finding is consistent with a model in which Bcl-2 contributes to the immortalization of B cells mediated by EBV. We therefore asked whether the expression of Bcl-2 protein correlates with the induction of three cellular phenotypes induced by or associated with LMP. The expression of Bcl-2 in primary B cells infected with the B95-8 strain of EBV varied between 1 and 1.8 times that in uninfected cells when 50% of the cells were infected, expressed LMP, and incorporated 20-fold more [3H]thymidine than did uninfected cells. This finding indicates that induced proliferation of these primary cells is not sufficient to induce Bcl-2. We found that BALB/c 3T3 cells and their derivatives transformed by LMP do not express Bcl-2 detectably. The expression of LMP at high levels in lymphoid cells is cytotoxic and correlates with an increased expression of Bcl-2 following stable selection for the introduced LMP gene; 2 days after transfection, control vector- and LMP-transfected populations, however, express equal levels of Bcl-2 protein. We also analyzed transient expression of LMP in an EBV-negative Burkitt's lymphoma cell line. Infection of BJAB cells with the B95-8 strain of EBV results in an increase in Bcl-2 expression with a time course similar to that of LMP expression, and LMP alone transiently induces an increase in Bcl-2 expression in these cells. We interpret these observations to indicate that increased expression of Bcl-2 is unlikely to contribute to the ability of EBV to immortalize primary B cells and that both the transformation of rodent cells and the cytotoxicity mediated by LMP are independent of Bcl-2.

3T3 Cells↗

EBV's open sesame.

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B-Lymphocytes↗

EBNA1 can link the enhancer element to the initiator element of the Epstein-Barr virus plasmid origin of DNA replication.

The plasmid origin of DNA replication of Epstein-Barr virus, oriP, is replicated once per cell division, employing cellular replication machinery and only one viral protein. To understand how replication from this origin is initiated and regulated, we purified this viral protein, EBNA1. EBNA1 was expressed in CV-1p cells by using an infectious simian virus 40 vector containing the EBNA1 gene. It was purified in two chromatographic steps to apparent homogeneity. The purified protein is capable of supporting transcription of the luciferase gene from a reporter plasmid carrying the FR enhancer element to which EBNA1 binds. EBNA1 does not have oriP-dependent ATPase activity, indicating that it does not carry out an energy-dependent step in the initiation of DNA replication. However, EBNA1 does mediate an association between the two elements of oriP. We measured this association by binding one of the elements, the enhancer element, to a solid matrix and measuring retention by this element of the other one, the initiator element, in the presence of EBNA1. This retention is specific for DNA fragments containing EBNA1-binding sites. EBNA1 thus can link the two elements of the origin, providing a locally high concentration of EBNA1 at the site of initiation of DNA replication. We propose that this association is important either (i) to affect DNA structure to allow a cellular helicase to initiate DNA strand separation or (ii) to bind replication proteins to bring them to the origin of replication.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗

A chimera of EBNA1 and the estrogen receptor activates transcription but not replication.

DNA replication from the plasmid origin of replication of Epstein-Barr virus requires one viral protein, EBNA1. This protein also acts as a transcriptional activator. Mutational analyses of EBNA1 have led to the conclusion that it supports transcription and DNA replication similarly. Such analyses have not probed the DNA-binding domain of EBNA1. To test whether domains of EBNA1 specifically required for either transcription or replication lie within its DNA-binding domain, we constructed a functional transcriptional activator by placing the EBNA1 DNA-binding domain in the context of the activation domains of the estrogen receptor. This hybrid protein did not support DNA replication, which indicates that the DNA-binding domain does not contain a replication-specific domain that can function along with heterologous transcriptional activating domains.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

DNA looping between the origin of replication of Epstein-Barr virus and its enhancer site: stabilization of an origin complex with Epstein-Barr nuclear antigen 1.

Epstein-Barr nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA-1) is the only viral protein required to support replication of Epstein-Barr virus during the latent phase of its life cycle. The DNA segment required for latent replication, oriP, contains two essential binding regions for EBNA-1, termed FR and DS, that are separated by 1 kilobase pair. The FR site appears to function as a replicational enhancer providing for the start of replication at the DS site. We have used electron microscopy to visualize the interaction of EBNA-1 with its binding sites and to study the mechanism for communication between the FR and DS sites. We have found that DNA-bound EBNA-1 forms a DNA loop between the FR and DS sites. From these results, we suggest that EBNA-1 bound to the replicational enhancer acts by a DNA-looping mechanism to facilitate the initiation of DNA replication. Occupancy of the DS site alone is highly sensitive to competition with nonspecific DNA. In contrast, occupancy of the DS site by looping from FR is largely resistant to the competitor DNA. These experiments support the concept that enhancers act in cis from nearby sites to provide a high local concentration of regulatory proteins at their target sites and to stabilize regulatory interactions.

Animals↗