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Antisense RNA regulation of the par post-segregational killing system: structural analysis and mechanism of binding of the antisense RNA, RNAII and its target, RNAI.

The par stability determinant of the Enterococcus faecalis plasmid pAD1 is the first antisense RNA regulated post-segregational killing system (PSK) identified in a Gram-positive organism. Par encodes two small, convergently transcribed RNAs, designated RNAI and RNAII, which are the toxin and antitoxin of the par PSK system respectively. RNAI encodes an open reading frame for a 33 amino acid toxin called Fst. Expression of fst is regulated post-transcriptionally by RNAII. RNAII interacts with RNAI by a unique antisense RNA mechanism involving binding at the 5' and 3' ends of both RNAs. Par RNA interaction requires a complementary transcriptional terminator stem-loop and a set of direct repeat sequences, DRa and DRb, located at the 5' end of both RNAs. The secondary structures of RNAI, RNAII and the RNAI-RNAII complex were analysed by partial digestion with Pb(II) and ribonucleases. Probing data for RNAI and RNAII are consistent with previously reported computer generated models, and also confirm that complementary direct repeat and terminator sequences are involved in the formation of the RNAI-RNAII complex. Mutant par RNAs were used to show that the binding reaction occurs in at least two steps. The first step is the formation of an initial kissing interaction between the transcriptional terminator stem-loops of both RNAs. The subsequent step(s) involves an initial pairing of the complementary direct repeat sequences followed by complete hybridization of the 5' nucleotides to stabilize the RNAI-RNAII complex.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Modified Plasmids and Inverted Terminal Repeats Enhance Adeno-Associated Virus Production and Performance.

Recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV) is a preferred vector in gene therapy, although high production costs inhibit widespread adoption. The most common approach for rAAV production involves transfection of HEK293 cells with three plasmids: pTransgene, pRep/Cap and pHelper. Producing sufficient amounts of these plasmids accounts for up to 40% of total batch costs. Initially, this work aimed to increase plasmid yields by replacing the backbones. While this approach increased pHelper yields, pRep/Cap and pTransgene yields were unaffected. A possible reason was identified: pTransgene contains inverted terminal repeat (ITR) sequences that are essential for rAAV production. ITRs have strong secondary structures (including hairpin loops termed B and C arms) that likely interfere with plasmid production. Therefore, targeted deletions were performed within the ITRs. Partial deletions in both the B and C arms of the ITR were most beneficial, as both plasmid yield and transgene expression increased. Importantly, partial deletions did not reduce rAAV yield, as had been previously observed when the B and C arms were fully deleted. In summary, we report a 140% increase in pHelper plasmid production, while the most successful ITR variant increased pTransgene plasmid yields by 57% and transgene expression by 28%, without reducing rAAV yields or transduction efficiency.

Humans↗

Nucleotide sequence and evolution of ETn elements.

The ETn (for "early transposon") family of long repeated sequences in abundantly transcribed in early mouse embryos from retroviral-like long terminal repeats. Nucleotide sequencing of two elements does not reveal any long open reading frame nor significant homology to retroviral proteins. The genetic polymorphism, monitored by Southern blotting within and across mouse species, reflects a concerted mode of evolution for the ETn sequences.

Animals↗

Structural diversity and nuclear protein binding sites in the long terminal repeats of feline leukemia virus.

The long terminal repeat U3 sequences were determined for multiple feline leukemia virus proviruses isolated from naturally occurring T-cell tumors. Heterogeneity was evident, even among proviruses cloned from individual tumors. Proviruses with one, two, or three repeats of the long terminal repeat enhancer sequences coexisted in one tumor, while two proviruses with distinct direct repeats were found in another. The enhancer repeats are characteristic of retrovirus variants with accelerated leukemogenic potential and occur between -155 and -244 base pairs relative to the RNA cap site. The termini of the repeats occur at or near sequence features which have been recognized at other retrovirus recombinational junctions. In vitro footprint analysis of the feline leukemia virus enhancer revealed three major nuclear protein binding sites, located at consensus sequences for the simian virus 40 core enhancer, the nuclear factor 1 binding site, and an indirect repeat which is homologous to the PEA2 binding site in the polyomavirus enhancer. Only the simian virus 40 core enhancer sequence is present in all of the enhancer repeats. Cell type differences in binding activities to the three motifs may underlie the selective process which leads to outgrowth of viruses with specific sequence duplications.

Animals↗

Human T-cell leukemia virus (HTLV) type II Rex protein binds specifically to RNA sequences of the HTLV long terminal repeat but poorly to the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Rev-responsive element.

The human T-cell leukemia viruses (HTLVs) encode a trans-regulatory protein, Rex, which differentially regulates viral gene expression by controlling the cytoplasmic accumulation of viral mRNAs. Because of insufficient amounts of purified protein, biochemical characterization of Rex activity has not previously been performed. Here, utilizing the baculovirus expression system, we purified HTLV type II (HTLV-II) Rex from the cytoplasmic fraction of recombinant baculovirus-infected insect cells by heparin-agarose chromatography. We directly demonstrated that Rex specifically bound HTLV-II 5' long terminal repeat RNA in both gel mobility shift and immunobinding assays. Sequences sufficient for Rex binding were localized to the R-U5 region of the HTLV-II 5' long terminal repeat and correlate with the region required for Rex function. The human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), has an analogous regulatory protein, Rev, which directly binds to and mediates its action through the Rev-responsive element located within the HIV-1 env gene. We demonstrated that HTLV-II Rex rescued an HIV-1JR-CSF Rev-deficient mutant, although inefficiently. This result is consistent with a weak binding activity to the HIV-1 Rev-responsive element under conditions in which it efficiently bound the HTLV-II long terminal repeat RNA.

Animals↗

Genome-wide distribution of ORC and MCM proteins in S. cerevisiae: high-resolution mapping of replication origins.

DNA replication origins are fundamental to chromosome organization and duplication, but understanding of these elements is limited because only a small fraction of these sites have been identified in eukaryotic genomes. Origin Recognition Complex (ORC) and minichromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins form prereplicative complexes at origins of replication. Using these proteins as molecular landmarks for origins, we identified ORC- and MCM-bound sites throughout the yeast genome. Four hundred twenty-nine sites in the yeast genome were predicted to contain replication origins, and approximately 80% of the loci identified on chromosome X demonstrated origin function. A substantial fraction of the predicted origins are associated with repetitive DNA sequences, including subtelomeric elements (X and Y') and transposable element-associated sequences (long terminal repeats). These findings identify the global set of yeast replication origins and open avenues of investigation into the role(s) ORC and MCM proteins play in chromosomal architecture and dynamics.

Binding Sites↗

Interaction of the adeno-associated virus Rep protein with a sequence within the A palindrome of the viral terminal repeat.

We have characterized a Rep binding sequence which is within the A stem region of the adeno-associated virus terminal repeat (TR) and compared its affinity with that of the complete hairpinned TR for pure Rep68. Both the A stem and the complete TR substrates produced a complex pattern of protein-DNA complexes in which at least six different bound species could be distinguished. Competition experiments suggested that the dissociation constant for the A stem sequence is approximately 125-fold higher than that for the complete TR. The competition experiments also suggested that the average number of Rep molecules per TR substrate molecule under conditions of saturating substrate is 3.7:1, while for the A stem substrate, the ratio is 10:1. In spite of the apparent difference in protein-to-DNA ratio in the complexes, no major difference was seen in the mobility or the pattern of the protein-DNA complexes with the two kinds of substrates, suggesting that the difference in protein-to-DNA ratio was due to the lower stability of the A stem complex rather than the actual number of Rep molecules per DNA molecule. At least some of the difference in stability of the two kinds of complexes was due to the fact that the dissociation rate of the A stem substrate from the protein-DNA complexes was approximately fourfold faster than that of the complete TR. The dissociation rate curves for both substrates, however, were complex, suggesting that substrate was being released from at least two different kinds of protein-DNA complexes at different rates. In addition, we have analyzed binding to several substitution mutants within the A stem of the TR. A five-base mutant near the terminal resolution site (trs site) had little effect on binding. Two other mutants produced seven- or five-base substitutions within the 25-bp sequence of the A stem that had been identified in the accompanying report (D. M. McCarty, D. J. Pereira, I. Zolotukhin, X. Zhou, J. H. Ryan, and N. Muzyczka, J. Virol. 68:4988-4997, 1994) as essential for binding. Each of these mutants eliminated some but not all of the repeating GAGC motifs in the 25-bp A stem region. Both of these mutants completely abolished binding to the A stem substrate but only partially reduced binding in the context of the complete hairpinned TR. Furthermore, neither mutant altered the pattern of Rep-DNA complexes produced.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Animals↗

An engineered lox sequence containing part of a long terminal repeat of HIV-1 permits Cre recombinase-mediated DNA excision.

In our previous report, one 34-bp sequence from a long terminal repeat (LTR) of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) clone, loxLTR-1, was proposed as a target site for site-specific excision by modified Cre recombinase. To support this suggestion, an engineered lox sequence, designated loxIL1, was made. This variant lox has the corresponding sequence of loxLTR-1 at the spacer region and the last two bases of inverted repeat sequence. Through in vitro recombination assay, loxIL1 also allowed the wild-type Cre to specifically recombine the sequence. An in vitro DNA binding experiment with mutants CreK244R and CreK244L revealed that lysine 244 of Cre plays an important role in interaction with the engineered lox. This result suggests that loxLTR-1 would be a candidate for antiviral strategy using site-specific recombinase.

DNA, Intergenic↗

Stable transduction of large DNA by high-capacity adeno-associated virus/adenovirus hybrid vectors.

Viral vectors with high cloning capacity and host chromosomal integration ability are in demand for the efficient and permanent genetic modification of target cells with large DNA molecules. We have generated a hybrid gene transfer vehicle consisting of recombinant adeno-associated virus (AAV) replicative intermediates packaged in adenovirus (Ad) capsids. This arrangement allows cell cycle-independent nuclear delivery of recombinant AAV genomes with lengths considerably above the maximum size (i.e., 4.7 kb) that can be accommodated within AAV capsids. Here we show that high-capacity AAV/Ad hybrid vector gene transfer mediates cellular genomic integration of large fragments of foreign DNA and accomplishes stable long-term transgene expression in rapidly proliferating cells. Southern blot and polymerase chain reaction analyses of chromosomal DNA extracted from clones of stably transduced cells revealed that most of them contained a single copy of the full-length hybrid vector genome with AAV inverted terminal repeat (ITR) sequences at both ends. The high-capacity AAV/Ad hybrid vector system can thus be used for the transfer and expression of transgenes that cannot be delivered by conventional integrating viral vectors.

Adenoviridae↗

Determination of the leukaemogenicity of a murine retrovirus by sequences within the long terminal repeat.

Although the murine retrovirus SL3-3 is highly leukaemogenic, in both the structure of its genome and in its properties of replication in tissue culture it closely resembles the nonleukaemogenic retrovirus Akv (refs 3, 4). An earlier investigation of the properties of recombinant SL3-3-Akv viruses localized the major determinant of leukaemogenicity outside the env gene, in a region of the viral genome that includes the gag gene and the noncoding long terminal repeat (LTR). To localize the determinant of SL3-3's leukaemogenicity more precisely we have now construced a recombinant provirus containing the LTR of SL3-3 and the coding region of Akv. The leukaemogenicity of these recombinants demonstrates that the determinant of leukaemogenicity lies within the SL3-3 LTR. Nucleotide sequencing of the LTRs of SL3-3 and Akv shows that they differ by a set of changes in the region thought to contain a transcriptional enhancer element. We suggest that enhancer region sequences are the major determinants of leukaemogenicity in these viruses.

Animals↗

A 39,000 Mr immunodominant protein of fowlpox virus contains multiple copies of a 12 amino acid repeat sequence.

The nucleotide sequence of an unusual fowlpox virus gene which maps immediately upstream from the fowlpox virus 4b gene has been determined. The 34,000 Mr protein predicted to be encoded by the gene contains 11 copies of a 12 amino acid serine-rich repeat sequence. The seven amino-terminal copies of the repeat sequence are perfectly conserved but variation exists in the four carboxy-terminal copies. Three peptides were synthesized which contained either one copy of the repeat sequence, two copies of the repeat sequence or a hydrophilic amino-terminal region of the protein. All three peptides when injected with adjuvant into rabbits gave rise to antibodies which reacted strongly on Western blots of purified fowlpox virus proteins with a 39,000 Mr protein. When directly compared in Western blots the antipeptide sera were shown to recognize a protein comigrating with one of the two immunodominant proteins recognized by chicken anti-fowlpox virus sera taken 2 weeks post-infection. The virion protein is removed by treatment with sodium deoxycholate suggesting that it is located at or near the surface of the virus.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Role of the LTR region between the enhancer and promoter in mink cell focus-forming murine leukemia virus pathogenesis.

Long terminal repeat (LTR) sequences are important determinants of mink cell focus-forming (MCF) murine leukemia virus pathogenesis. These sequences include the enhancer and sequences between the enhancer and promoter (DEN). In a previous study we showed that a virus missing the DEN region in its LTR was severely attenuated in its ability to induce thymic lymphoma. In this study we observed that a virus with an LTR consisting of DEN but no enhancer sequences was pathogenic. We compared the pathogenicity of this DEN virus with other LTR mutant MCF13 viruses that contained a single enhancer (1R) or a single enhancer plus DEN (1R + DEN). All LTR mutant viruses generated thymic lymphoma, however, at a much lower incidence and with a longer latency compared with wild-type (WT) MCF13 virus. DEN virus replication in the thymus was the lowest compared with the 1R and 1R + DEN viruses. Viral replication in a different thymic subpopulation could not explain the decreased pathogenicity of the LTR mutant viruses compared with WT virus. However, lower levels of mutant virus replication in the thymus compared with WT during the preleukemic period may contribute to the attenuation of pathogenicity. The phenotype of tumors induced by the mutant viruses was similar and differed from tumors induced by WT virus by the presence of CD3(-)CD4(-)CD8(-) cells. Analysis of LTR sequences of infectious virus rescued from tumors induced by the 1R and 1R + DEN viruses showed that amplification of enhancer sequences had occurred during tumor development. The lack of DEN virus expression by tumor cells led us to propose that DEN sequences may play a role at an early step in tumorigenesis.

Animals↗

Characterization of nuclear proteins that bind the EFII enhancer sequence in the Rous sarcoma virus long terminal repeat.

The EFII cis element is a 38-bp sequence at the 5' end of the Rous sarcoma virus long terminal repeat, extending from nucleotides -229 to -192 (with respect to the viral transcription start site), which is recognized by sequence-specific DNA-binding proteins in avian fibroblast nuclear extracts (L. Sealy and R. Chalkley, Mol. Cell. Biol. 7:787-798, 1987). We demonstrate that multiple copies of the EFII cis element strongly activate transcription of a reporter gene in vivo. We correlate the region of the EFII cis element which activates transcription in vivo with the in vitro binding site for three nuclear factors, EFIIa, EFIIb, and EFIIc. The sequence motif recognized by EFIIa, -b, and -c is also found in consensus binding sites for members of a rapidly growing family of transcription factors related to the CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein (C/EBP). EFIIa, -b, and -c are present in fibroblast and epithelial cell lines from various species but are much less abundant in differentiated rat liver and kidney cells. The EFIIa binding activity is particularly abundant in an avian B-cell lymphoma line. As judged from molecular weight analysis, cell type distribution, and sequence recognition properties, the EFII factors under study appear to differ from most of the previously described C/EBP-related factors and thus may expand the diversity of the C/EBP family.

Avian Sarcoma Viruses↗

C-terminal sequences outside the tetratricopeptide repeat domain of FKBP51 and FKBP52 cause differential binding to Hsp90.

Hsp90 assembles with steroid receptors and other client proteins in association with one or more Hsp90-binding cochaperones, some of which contain a common tetratricopeptide repeat (TPR) domain. Included in the TPR cochaperones are the Hsp70-Hsp90-organizing protein Hop, the FK506-binding immunophilins FKBP52 and FKBP51, the cyclosporin A-binding immunophilin CyP40, and protein phosphatase PP5. The TPR domains from these proteins have similar x-ray crystallographic structures and target cochaperone binding to the MEEVD sequence that terminates Hsp90. However, despite these similarities, the TPR cochaperones have distinctive properties for binding Hsp90 and assembling with Hsp90.steroid receptor complexes. To identify structural features that differentiate binding of FKBP51 and FKBP52 to Hsp90, we generated an assortment of truncation mutants and chimeras that were compared for coimmunoprecipitation with Hsp90. Although the core TPR domain (approximately amino acids 260-400) of FKBP51 and FKBP52 is required for Hsp90 binding, the C-terminal 60 amino acids (approximately 400-end) also influence Hsp90 binding. More specifically, we find that amino acids 400-420 play a critical role for Hsp90 binding by either FKBP. Within this 20-amino acid region, we have identified a consensus sequence motif that is also present in some other TPR cochaperones. Additionally, the final 30 amino acids of FKBP51 enhance binding to Hsp90, whereas the corresponding region of FKBP52 moderates binding to Hsp90. Taking into account the x-ray crystal structure for FKBP51, we conclude that the C-terminal regions of FKBP51 and FKBP52 outside the core TPR domains are likely to assume alternative conformations that significantly impact Hsp90 binding.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Location and analysis of nucleotide sequences at one end of a putative lac transposon in the Escherichia coli chromosome.

A segment of Escherichia coli DNA that contained a discontinuity of homology with Salmonella typhimurium DNA was isolated. The segment, 1,430 base pairs long, was derived from one end of the lac "loop," a region of about 12 kilobase pairs of E. coli DNA, including the lac operon which has no detectable homology with S. typhimurium DNA (K. Lampel and M. Riley, Mol. Gen. Genet. 186:82-86, 1982). The nucleotide sequence of the 1,430-base-pair segment of DNA was determined. The location of the junction of discontinuity of homology within the segment was established by hybridization experiments. Nucleotide sequences at or near the junction were determined to be similar to sequences that are involved in site-specific inversion in S. typhimurium, E. coli, phage P1, and phage Mu. Similar sequences are also present within the terminal inverted repeat sequences of transposon Tn5 and at the V-D-J joining sequences of eucaryotic immunoglobulin genes. Therefore, the lac operon, together with flanking DNA, may have been inserted into the E. coli chromosome at one time via a site-specific recombination event. Rearrangement events of this kind undoubtedly have played a significant role in the evolutionary divergence of chromosomal DNAs.

Base Composition↗

The a sequence is dispensable for isomerization of the herpes simplex virus type 1 genome.

The herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) genome consists of two components, L (long) and S (short), that invert relative to each other during productive infection to generate four equimolar isomeric forms of viral DNA. Recent studies have indicated that this genome isomerization is the result of DNA replication-mediated homologous recombination between the large inverted repeat sequences that exist in the genome, rather than site-specific recombination through the terminal repeat a sequences present at the L-S junctions. However, there has never been an unequivocal demonstration of the dispensability of the latter element for this process using a recombinant virus whose genome lacks a sequences at its L-S junctions. This is because the genetic manipulations required to generate such a viral mutant are not possible using simple marker transfer, since the cleavage and encapsidation signals of the a sequence represent essential cis-acting elements which cannot be deleted outright from the viral DNA. To circumvent this problem, a simple two-step strategy was devised by which essential cis-acting sites like the a sequence can be readily deleted from their natural loci in large viral DNA genomes. This method involved initial duplication of the element at a neutral site in the viral DNA and subsequent deletion of the element from its native site. By using this approach, the a sequence at the L-S junction was rendered dispensable for virus replication through the insertion of a second copy into the thymidine kinase (TK) gene of the viral DNA; the original copies at the L-S junctions were then successfully deleted from this virus by conventional marker transfer. The final recombinant virus, HSV-1::L-S(delta)a, was found to be capable of undergoing normal levels of genome isomerization on the basis of the presence of equimolar concentrations of restriction fragments unique to each of the four isomeric forms of the viral DNA. Interestingly, only two of these genomic isomers could be packaged into virions. This restriction was the result of inversion of the L component during isomerization, which prevented two of the four isomers from having the cleavage and encapsidation signals of the a sequence in the TK gene in a packageable orientation. This phenomenon was exploited as a means of directly measuring the kinetics of HSV-1::L-S(delta)a genome isomerization. Following infection with virions containing just the two packaged genomic isomers, all four isomers were readily detected at a stage in infection coincident with the onset of DNA replication, indicating that the loss of the a sequence at the L-S junction had no adverse effect on the frequency of isomerization events in this virus. These results therefore validate the homologous recombination model of HSV-1 genome isomerization by directly demonstrating that the a sequence at the L-S junction is dispensable for this process. The strategy used to remove the a sequence from the HSV-1 genome in this work should be broadly applicable to studies of essential cis-acting elements in other large viral DNA molecules.

Animals↗

A novel pseudoautosomal human gene encodes a putative protein similar to Ac-like transposases.

We report the cloning of a novel gene, called Tramp, in the Xp/Yp PAR region that has a functional homologue on the Y chromosome and escapes X-inactivation. This gene encodes, within a single exon, a putative protein that has amino acid similarity with transposases of the Ac family. Flanking this gene we have identified putative terminal inverted repeats (TIRs) and a duplicate target site, suggesting that it may be an ancient transposable element. The nucleotide differences in these sites and the TIR-binding inactivity of the putative Tramp protein suggest that this element is not an autonomous transposon. In the human genome, the Tramp protein may be involved in the transposition of other transposable elements, like medium reiterated frequency repeats, or it could be specialized in the acquisition of a new cellular function.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Anaconda, a new class of transposon belonging to the Mu superfamily, has diversified by acquiring host genes during rice evolution.

A new type of transposon, named Anaconda (Anac) has been found in rice (Oryza sativa). In this paper, we demonstrate that Anaconda elements have diversified by acquisition of host cellular genes, amplification of the elements, and substitution and deletion of short segments. We identified four Anaconda elements in studies of rice alternative oxidase (AOX) genes, and subsequently isolated an additional 23 elements based on the identity of their terminal inverted repeats (TIRs). The Anaconda elements have long TIRs (114-458 bp). They also have direct repeats of 9 or 10 bp in their flanking regions that are thought to have been generated upon transposition. These structural features reveal that the Anaconda elements belong to the Mu superfamily. The most prominent feature of the Anaconda elements is the high frequency with which they have acquired host cellular genes. Of the 27 elements found here, 19 appear to have sequences presumably derived from rice genes, for example, the genes for AOX1c (four elements), cytochrome P450 (five elements), L: -asparaginase (five elements), and PCF8 (two elements). Four elements, AnacA1-A4, have both the AOX1c and P450 genes. One element, AnacB14, involves a gene similar to mudrA of maize MuDR. Database analyses revealed that the loci of 26 of the 27 Anaconda elements in the subspecies japonica are the same as those in the subspecies indica. This suggests that these elements were incorporated before the divergence of these two subspecies.

Amino Acid Sequence↗