Avian leukosis virus-induced tumors have common proviral integration sites and synthesize discrete new RNAs: oncogenesis by promoter insertion

Oncogene involvement in radiation- and virus-induced mouse osteosarcomas

Internal irradiation of mice using bone seeking radionuclides results in the activation of endogenous retroviruses and in the subsequent development of bone tumors. Genomic DNA from an osteosarcoma cell line, derived from an 90Sr-induced bone tumor, was cotransfected with the plasmid pSV2-neo into NIH/3T3 cells and G418-resistant transfectants gave rise to colonies in soft agar. Southern blot analysis of these first cycle transformants revealed the presence of extra copies of c-ras. We have analysed the arrangement of ecotropic murine leukemia proviral sequences in seven 90Sr-induced bone tumors and one osteosarcoma cell line of CF1-mice. Integration of ecotropic and/or ecotropic recombinant proviruses seems to be involved in rearrangements of 3' provirus cellular junction fragments occurring in all tumor DNAs analysed, but no indication for site-specific integration was found. We also determined the primary structure of FBR-MuSV, a transforming retrovirus able to induce bone tumors in newborn mice. FBR-MuSV contains sequences from all four exons of the murine c-fos gene, but lacks sequences encoding the first 24 and the last 98 amino acids of the c-fos gene product. The coding region of FBR-MuSV has also undergone two small in frame deletions. Thus, the v-fosFBR-MuSV retains 236 amino acids of the 380 amino acids of the murine c-fos product. In FBR-MuSV-transformed cells two fos-containing mRNAs have been detected: a 3.3-kb full-size genomic RNA and a 2.2-kb subgenomic mRNA as revealed by both fos- and MuLV-hybridization probes.

Development of a helper-independent human adenovirus vector and its use in the transfer of the herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase gene

Approximately 2 kilobases (kb) of additional DNA can be packaged into wild-type virions of human adenovirus type 5 (Ad5). To extend this limit, a helper independent Ad5 cloning vector was constructed by deleting most of early region 3 (E3) from map coordinates 78.5 to 84.7 and essentially all of early region 1 (E1) from coordinates 1.0 to 10.6. E3 is nonessential for adenovirus replication in cultured cells, and E1 is nonessential when the virus is propagated in 293 cells which constitutively express the E1 gene products. The resulting new virus, dlE1,3 is about 5.5 kb shorter than wild-type Ad5 and therefore should be able to accept up to 7.5 kb in foreign DNA. To test the usefulness of this vector, the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) thymidine kinase gene (tk) along with its regulatory sequences was inserted into the unique XbaI site of dlE1,3 (at map position 78.5/84.7). The resulting recombinant virus, Adtk, expressed the HSV tk at a low level (as compared with HSV-1) in infected cells; however, tk expression was markedly enhanced when Adtk-infected cells were superinfected with a tk- mutant of HSV. Furthermore, the Adtk virus efficiently transformed tk- mouse cells (line LTA) to the tk+ phenotype. At a low efficiency, it was also possible to transform tk- human cells (line 143), and tk+ transformants of both mouse and human origin have been established as permanent lines.

The pathophysiology of murine retrovirus-induced leukemias

Murine leukemia viruses (MuLVs) are retroviruses which induce a broad spectrum of hematopoietic malignancies. In contrast to the acutely transforming retroviruses, MuLVs do not contain transduced cellular genes, or oncogenes. Nonetheless, MuLVs can cause leukemias quickly (4 to 6 weeks) and efficiently (up to 100% incidence) in susceptible strains of mice. The molecular basis of MuLV-induced leukemia is not clear. However, the contribution of individual viral genes to leukemogenesis can be assayed by creating novel viruses in vitro using recombinant DNA techniques. These genetically engineered viruses are tested in vivo for their ability to cause leukemia. Leukemogenic MuLVs possess genetic sequences which are not found in nonleukemogenic viruses. These sequences control the histologic type, incidence, and latency of disease induced by individual MuL Vs.

Mouse chromosomal mapping of a murine leukemia virus integration region (Mis-1) first identified in rat thymic leukemia

We have previously identified a region of genomic DNA which constitutes the site of frequent provirus integration in rat thymomas induced by Moloney murine leukemia virus (Lemay and Jolicoeur, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 81:38-42, 1984). This genetic locus is now designated Mis-1 (Moloney integration site). Cellular sequences homologous to Mis-1 are present in mouse DNA. Using a series of hamster-mouse somatic cell hybrids, we mapped the Mis-1 locus to mouse chromosome 15. Frequent chromosome 15 aberrations have been described in mouse thymomas. Mis-1 represents a putative new oncogene which might be involved in the initiation or maintenance or both of these neoplasms.

Cellular DNA regions involved in the induction of rat thymic lymphomas (Mlvi-1, Mlvi-2, Mlvi-3, and c-myc) represent independent loci as determined by their chromosomal map location in the rat

The induction of thymic lymphomas by Moloney murine leukemia virus in the rat is linked to provirus integration in at least four independent cellular DNA regions (Mlvi-1, Mlvi-2, Mlvi-3, and c-myc). Because sequences homologous to at least three of these regions (Mlvi-1, Mlvi-2, and c-myc) map to chromosome 15 in the mouse, the question was raised whether they are closely linked in the rat genome and whether provirus integration in any one of these regions affects the same functional domain in rat DNA. In this study, we identified the chromosomal map location of Mlvi-1, Mlvi-2, and Mlvi-3 in the rat by using mouse-rat somatic cell hybrids that lose the rat chromosomes. The results showed that Mlvi-1 maps similarly to c-myc to chromosome 7, and Mlvi-2 maps to chromosome 2. Mlvi-3 probably maps to chromosome 15. We conclude that Mlvi-1, Mlvi-2, and Mlvi-3 are separate and independent genetic loci. Although Mlvi-1 and c-myc map to the same chromosome, they are not related, as determined by hybridization and restriction endonuclease mapping. The chromosomal map location of Mlvi-1 to chromosome 7 and Mlvi-2 to chromosome 2 is interesting, since chromosomal aberrations involving these two chromosomes are reproducibly observed in rat neoplasias induced by a variety of agents.

Nucleotide sequence of HBI, a novel recombinant MC29 derivative with altered pathogenic properties

HBI is a recombinant avian retrovirus with novel pathogenic properties that was derived from the myc-containing virus MC29. In contrast to MC29, which causes endotheliomas in chickens, HBI induces lymphoid tumors. The results of molecular cloning and nucleotide sequencing of HBI reported here show that the virus contains sequences derived from both c-myc and ring-neck pheasant virus, in addition to MC29. The 3' half of the myc gene was largely replaced by c-myc sequences, and most of the long terminal repeat and gag regions were replaced by ring-neck pheasant virus sequences. The long terminal repeat contained a triplicate sequence which was homologous to the core enhancer sequence of the simian virus 40 72-base-pair repeat. The significance of these changes in relation to the unusual biological properties of the virus are discussed.

The action of oncogenes in the cytoplasm and nucleus

As many as 40 distinct oncogenes of viral and cellular origin have been identified to date. Many of these genes can be grouped into functional classes on the basis of their effects on cellular phenotype. These groupings suggest a small number of mechanisms of action of the oncogene-encoded proteins. Some data suggest that, in the cytoplasm, these proteins may regulate levels of critical second messenger molecules; in the nucleus, these proteins may modulate the activity of the cell's transcriptional machinery. Many of the gene products can also be related to a signaling pathway that determines the cell's response to growth-stimulating factors. Because some of these genes are expressed in nongrowing, differentiated cells, the encoded proteins may in certain tissues mediate functions that are unrelated to cellular growth control.

Differential requirement for SV40 early genes in immortalization and transformation of primary rat and human embryonic cells

A series of recombinant plasmids carrying various DNA fragments of SV40 early region were used to test for their ability to immortalize primary cultures of rat embryo (RE) and human embryonic kidney (HEK) cells. When primary RE cells were transfected with plasmids containing an entire early region of wild-type SV40- or a deletion mutant in the small tumor (t) antigen, dl 1410-DNA, they were all immortalized. The immortalized cells could grow in soft-agar medium and produced large tumor (T)-antigen. Cultured RE cells transfected with pW2-t, which contains a deletion in the large-T-specific coding region, also gave rise to continuous cell lines. Interestingly, two of nine RE lines immortalized by pW2-t could also grow in soft-agar medium. The plasmid pW-t8 carrying a similar fragment of SV40 DNA as pW2-t, but lacking the processing and polyadenylation signal sequences, also immortalized RE cells. Surprisingly, the plasmid pD-t1 which contains neither the intact large-T nor the small-t function also immortalized RE cells. However, the RE lines immortalized by pW-t8 or pD-t1 were unable to grow in soft-agar medium and displayed a wide range of growth phenotypes. On the contrary, when primary HEK cells were used for immortalization experiments, only those SV40 plasmids carrying the intact large-T function were able to generate immortalized lines. The growth properties of these immortalized HEK lines can be categorized into two groups. Those HEK lines immortalized by the large T alone grew slightly denser and rounder than their parental normal HEK cells, while those immortalized by both the large-T and small-t antigens grew extremely fast, reached higher density, piled up on each other, and were anchorage independent. In addition, when these SV40 plasmids were used to directly transform primary HEK cells by the focus assay, the large-T clone, pD3-05, only transformed HEK cells to form light foci. Transfection by the large-T plus the small-t sequences either in cis or in trans, did increase the frequency of focus formation, and gave rise to dense foci which could grow in soft-agar medium.

A novel expression selection approach allows precise mapping of the hepatitis B virus enhancer

We have used a novel approach called expression selection to precisely define the hepatitis B virus (HBV) enhancer. Expression selection is based on a shuttle vector containing an enhancerless SV40 T antigen gene, the SV40 origin of replication and a plasmid replicon. This vector is linearized, ligated with the sonicated DNA to be analyzed and transfected into eukaryotic cells, where only plasmids which have incorporated an enhancer can express T antigen and therefore replicate. Vectors amplified by replication are selectively rescued in E. coli and their inserts analyzed. When we performed this protocol with HBV DNA we rescued two overlapping fragments of 166 and 214 bp which in HBV DNA map about 500 bp upstream of the core antigen mRNA initiation site and 1150 bp downstream of the surface antigen mRNA initiation site. These results were confirmed by conventional deletion mapping. When compared to the SV40 enhancer in nonhepatic cell lines, the HBV enhancer is only 5 to 10% as active; nevertheless, it also acts in an orientation-independent manner and in a position downstream of a gene. The HBV enhancer is situated in the coding region of the potential reverse transcriptase, and thus is the first enhancer identified to map in a protein-coding region.

Retroviral insertional mutagenesis in murine mammary cancer

We are attempting to identify cellular oncogenes activated in mammary tumours by using the mouse mammary tumour virus (MMTV) as an insertional mutagen. MMTV, a retrovirus lacking a host cell-derived viral oncogene, induces adenocarcinomas of the mammary gland after a long latency period. The tumours are clonal outgrowths of cells carrying one or more integrated MMTV proviral copies. We have cloned an integrated MMTV provirus with its adjacent chromosomal DNA and we have established that the insertion site was part of a domain of the mouse genome in which MMTV proviruses are inserted in many different tumours. A gene within this domain, called int-1 is transcriptionally activated as a consequence of proviral integration. We have proposed that int-1 is a cellular oncogene for mammary tumours. Proviral activation of int-1 occurs in cis, over distances of up to 10 kilobases and is presumably caused by the transcriptional enhancer present on the MMTV long terminal repeat. The putative int-1 mammary oncogene has been subjected to a detailed structural analysis by S1 mapping and DNA sequencing. It encodes a protein that is highly conserved between mouse and man. The protein encoding domain of the gene is distributed over four exons which are demarcated by the insertion sites of MMTV proviruses found in mammary tumours. Some insertions, however, are found in the transcriptional unit of int-1, but these insertions do not disrupt the protein encoding domain of the gene.

P-element-induced control mutations at the r gene of Drosophila melanogaster

The P-M hybrid dysgenesis system was used to produce five putative regulatory mutations at the rudimentary locus, r. All five mutations were the result of insertions at the 5' end of the gene, upstream of the proposed start of transcription. All of the mutants displayed a leaky wing phenotype, and four of the mutants showed an uncoupling of the wing and female-sterility phenotypes, suggesting that they altered the normal spatial and temporal expression of the r gene. Four of the insertions were P elements. The fifth insertion, which was larger than an intact P element, consisted of a small P element connected to non-P-element DNA. Two of the mutants produced very little r transcript in adult females and were clustered 80 to 150 base pairs upstream of the start of transcription. The other three mutants had higher levels of r transcript in adult females and were clustered 440 to 500 base pairs upstream of the start of transcription. All of the data suggest that the insertions are in a 5' noncoding region of the r gene involved in the control of its spatial and temporal expression.

Deregulation of c-myc gene expression in human colon carcinoma is not accompanied by amplification or rearrangement of the gene

The structure and expression of the c-myc oncogene were examined in 29 primary human colon adenocarcinomas. Dot blot hybridization of total RNA showed that 21 tumors (72%) had considerably elevated expression of c-myc (5- to 40-fold) relative to normal colonic mucosa. These data were corroborated by Northern blots of polyadenylated RNA, which showed a 2.3-kilobase transcript. Southern analysis of the c-myc locus in these tumors indicated the absence of amplification or DNA rearrangement in a 35-kilobase region encompassing the gene. In a parallel study, elevated expression of c-myc without amplification or DNA rearrangement was also observed in three of six colon carcinoma cell lines examined; in addition, unlike a normal colon cell line control, these three cell lines exhibited constitutive, high-level expression of the gene during their growth in cultures. These results indicate that elevated expression of the c-myc oncogene occurs frequently in primary human colon carcinomas and that the mechanism involved in the regulation of c-myc expression is altered in tumor-derived cell lines.

Cell lines derived from avian lymphomas exhibit two distinct phenotypes

Lymphoid cell lines were derived from three avian leukosis virus (ALV)-induced lymphomas. These cell lines contained proviral DNA sequences integrated upstream from the c-myc proto-oncogene, expressed increased levels of c-myc RNA, and were tumorigenic in syngeneic animals. While cell surface immunoglobulin (IgM) was expressed by all three cell lines, only one of the lines secreted IgM into the culture medium. Further, analysis by light microscopy and flow cytometry demonstrated that these cell lines exhibited two distinct morphological and light-scattering profiles. The two nonsecreting lines exhibited a lymphoblastoid phenotype, whereas, the secreting line possessed a more differentiated plasmacytoid phenotype. These findings implicate the activation of c-myc in the pathogenesis of tumors representing two distinct stages of B-cell differentiation within a single animal species.

c-erbB activation in ALV-induced erythroblastosis: novel RNA processing and promoter insertion result in expression of an amino-truncated EGF receptor

ALV-induced erythroblastosis results from the specific interruption of the host oncogene, c-erbB, by the insertion of an intact provirus. Integrated proviruses are oriented in the same transcriptional direction as c-erbB, and expression of truncated c-erbB transcripts is observed. Evidence, including sequence analysis of cDNA clones, indicates that transcription of truncated c-erbB mRNA is initiated in the 5' LTR of the integrated provirus. This transcript is processed through a series of remarkable splicing reactions to yield viral gag and env sequences fused to erbB sequences. These results establish a novel pathway of promoter insertion oncogenesis that stands in contrast to the pathways used in the activation of c-myc in B lymphomas.

Genetic mapping of a cellular DNA region involved in induction of thymic lymphomas (Mlvi-1) to mouse chromosome 15

Mlvi-1 defines a genetic locus representing a common domain for proviral DNA integration in Moloney murine leukemia virus-induced rat thymic lymphomas. Cellular sequences homologous to Mlvi-1 are present in mouse DNA, and we have used hamster-mouse somatic cell hybrids to chromosomally map Mlvi-1 in the mouse genome. Results demonstrated that Mlvi-1 maps to mouse chromosome 15 and that it is distinct from the Mlvi-2 integration region and from the cellular oncogenes c-myc and c-sis, which also map to this chromosome. Therefore, Mlvi-1 may contain novel sequences involved in the establishment and maintenance of virus-induced murine tumors, many of which contain abnormalities of chromosome 15.

Deletion in the 3' pol sequence correlates with aberration of RNA expression in certain replication-defective avian sarcoma viruses

The RNA expression of a series of replication-defective recovered avian sarcoma viruses (rASVs) were studied. Abnormal-sized viral RNAs, both larger and smaller than the genome, were observed in the nonproducer cells infected with rASVs containing env and pol deletions. Each nonproducer clone contained a single provirus integrated at a unique site and expressed a unique RNA pattern. Upon rescuing of the sarcoma virus with a helper virus and subsequent cloning, the RNA pattern of individual nonproducer clones again displayed variation according to the integration sites. This was not seen in nondefective rASV or in rASVs containing only an env deletion. The aberrant RNA expression did not result from the lack of reverse transcriptase activity per se, since neither nonconditional nor temperature-sensitive mutants of RSV expressed abnormal viral RNAs in the absence of a functional reverse transcriptase. The abnormal RNA patterns could not be corrected in trans by helper virus functions. The unusual-sized RNAs in env- pol- rASV-infected cells are not due to splicing to alternative acceptor sites for src mRNA because there are no extra viral sequences between the 5' leader and the src sequences; instead, they are due to the presence of extra sequences, most likely of cellular origin, at the 3' ends of the viral RNAs. Based upon the extent of deletions in the viral genomes, the data suggest that deletion in the 3' pol region of those rASVs results in a cis effect on the transcription and processing of the 3' ends of viral RNAs. The unusual-sized viral RNAs are most likely due to read-through transcription from the right-hand terminus of provirus into downstream cellular sequences, followed by cleavage and polyadenylation at multiple sites of the 3' region of the RNA transcripts. The extent of read-through transcription appears to depend on the chromosomal location of the provirus.

The pX region of the bovine leukemia virus is transcribed as a 2.1-kilobase mRNA

The bovine leukemia virus mRNAs expressed in cultured bovine cells of various origins are a 9.0-kilobase genomic RNA, a 5.1-kilobase env RNA, and a newly detected 2.1-kilobase RNA corresponding to the transcription of pX sequences located in between the env gene and the 3' end of the provirus.

Friend murine leukemia virus-immortalized myeloid cells are converted into tumorigenic cell lines by Abelson leukemia virus

Friend murine leukemia virus (Fr-MuLV) is a replication-competent murine retrovirus that induces acute nonlymphocytic leukemias in NFS/n mice. Fr-MuLV disease is divided into two stages based on the ability of the leukemia cells to grow in culture and transplant into syngeneic mice. Hematopoietic cells taken from the early stage of disease after Fr-MuLV infection grow as immortal myeloid cell lines in the presence of WEHI-3 cell-conditioned medium (CM) or interleukin 3. These growth factor-dependent cell lines do not grow in culture in the absence of CM and do not form tumors in syngeneic animals. If these Fr-MuLV-infected cells are superinfected with Abelson murine leukemia virus (Ab-MuLV), they lose their dependence on WEHI-3 CM and proliferate in culture in the absence of exogenous growth factors. Concomitant with the loss of growth factor dependence in culture, the Ab-MuLV-infected cell lines become tumorigenic in syngeneic mice. This secondary level of transformation is Ab-MuLV specific. Fr-MuLV-immortalized myeloid cell lines superinfected with Harvey murine sarcoma virus (Ha-MuSV) or amphotropic virus remain dependent on WEHI-3 CM for growth in vitro and are not tumorigenic in vivo. Neither Ab-MuLV- nor Ha-MuSV-infected normal mouse myeloid cell cultures produce growth factor-independent or tumorigenic cell lines. We conclude that at least two genetic events are needed to convert a murine myeloid precursor into a tumorigenic cell line. The first event occurs in Fr-MuLV-infected mice, generating cells that are growth factor dependent but immortal in vitro. The second event, which can be accomplished by Ab-MuLV infection, converts these immortal myeloid precursors into growth factor-independent and tumorigenic cells.

Construction and recovery of viable retroviral genomes carrying a bacterial suppressor transfer RNA gene

The integration of retroviral genomes into cellular DNA can induce mutations by altering the expression of nearby cellular genes and can serve to identify the gene affected. The construction of a retrovirus that stably carries a suppressor transfer RNA gene from Escherichia coli has allowed facile recovery of the viral genome in vectors marked with amber mutations. This virus can be used for rapid isolation of cellular sequences at the site of proviral insertion.

Functional RNA polymerase II promoters in solitary retroviral long terminal repeats (LTR-IS elements)

LTR-IS elements are middle repetitive sequences in the mouse genome with structural features of solitary retroviral LTRs. In order to get some insight in the possible functional role of these sequences the promotor activity of two LTR-IS representatives differing by 105 bp in their U3 region was investigated. Gene fusions between LTR-IS sequences and the bacterial gene coding for chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) were transfected into mouse 3T6 cells and the expression of CAT was measured. It is shown that the LTR-IS sequences represent weak RNA polymerase II promoters which require enhancement by cis-or trans-activating factors.

Characterization of a retrovirus shuttle vector capable of either proviral integration or extrachromosomal replication in mouse cells

A retrovirus shuttle vector is described that contains the dominant selectable neo gene which confers resistance to kanamycin in bacteria and to the drug G418 in animal cells. The bacterial supF gene and the origins of DNA replication from polyomavirus and the ColE1 replicon also have been included in this vector. Infection of normal rodent cells results in single-copy proviral integration, whereas infection of mouse (MOP) cells expressing polyoma large T antigen results in extrachromosomal replication of the DNA form of the virus. The copy number of the extrachromosomal circles in MOP cells varies from 0 to 100 copies per cell. G418-resistant MOP cells lose their drug-resistant phenotype after passage under nonselective conditions, suggesting that maintenance of the extrachromosomal circles is unstable. The extrachromosomal form of the virus can be recovered as plasmids in Escherichia coli. Two-thirds of the circles analyzed were found to be structurally intact. The others have undergone rearrangements including deletions and insertions. The bacterial supF gene was found to be intact in the majority of recovered plasmids. The data presented here suggest that these retroviruses should be useful as gene transfer vectors for animal cells in culture or in vivo.

Genetic mapping of a cellular DNA region involved in induction of thymic lymphomas (Mlvi-1) to mouse chromosome 15

Mlvi-1 defines a genetic locus representing a common domain for proviral DNA integration in Moloney murine leukemia virus-induced rat thymic lymphomas. Cellular sequences homologous to Mlvi-1 are present in mouse DNA, and we have used hamster-mouse somatic cell hybrids to chromosomally map Mlvi-1 in the mouse genome. Results demonstrated that Mlvi-1 maps to mouse chromosome 15 and that it is distinct from the Mlvi-2 integration region and from the cellular oncogenes c-myc and c-sis, which also map to this chromosome. Therefore, Mlvi-1 may contain novel sequences involved in the establishment and maintenance of virus-induced murine tumors, many of which contain abnormalities of chromosome 15.

In vitro transcription analysis of the viral promoter involved in c-myc activation in chicken B lymphomas: detection and mapping of two RNA initiation sites within the reticuloendotheliosis virus long terminal repeat

Chicken syncytial virus, a member of the reticuloendotheliosis virus family, induces B-cell lymphomas in chickens that arise by transcriptional activation of the chicken c-myc gene. In vitro transcription studies on cloned tumor DNA containing a deleted chicken syncytial virus provirus integrated upstream from, and in the same transcriptional orientation as, the chicken c-myc coding region were utilized to map possible transcriptional promoters and initiation sites. In vitro transcripts extending into c-myc sequences were initiated at two sites within the downstream long terminal repeat (LTR) closest to c-myc coding sequences. Both initiation sites have been precisely mapped by S1 nuclease and DNA sequencing methods. One site (I1) lies at the U3-R junction of the LTR, and the other site (I2) lies approximately 160 nucleotides upstream. Transcriptional control signals, including TATA- and CAAT-like sequences are present at appropriate distances upstream from the initiation sites. Both initiation sites are utilized to a similar extent. The upstream chicken syncytial virus LTR was also shown to be transcriptionally active in vitro. Two strong transcriptional initiation sites were also found in the LTR of spleen necrosis virus, a related member of the reticuloendotheliosis virus family; therefore, it seems likely that the existence of two transcriptional initiation sites is a common feature of the reticuloendotheliosis virus LTR, in contrast to other previously studied retroviral LTRs that exhibit one such site. The possible implications of these findings are discussed.

c-erbB activation in avian leukosis virus-induced erythroblastosis: clustered integration sites and the arrangement of provirus in the c-erbB alleles

There is considerable evidence that links the activation of cellular genes to oncogenesis. We previously reported that structural rearrangements in the cellular oncogene c-erbB correlate with the development of erythroblastosis induced by avian leukosis virus (ALV). c-erbB recently has been shown to be related to the gene encoding epidermal growth factor receptor. We now have characterized the detailed mechanisms of c-erbB activation by ALV proviruses. We report here that the ALV proviral integration sites are clustered 5' to the region where homology to v-erbB starts, suggesting that interruption in this region of c-erbB is important for its activation. The proviruses are oriented in the same transcriptional direction as c-erbB and usually are full-size. The latter finding is in contrast to the frequent deletions observed within the c-myc-linked proviruses in B-cell lymphomas. We have also identified a second c-erbB allele, which differs from the previously known allele primarily by a deletion in an intron region. This allele is also oncogenic upon mutation by an ALV provirus.

Expression of a mouse long terminal repeat is cell cycle-linked

The expression of the long terminal repeat (LTR) of intracisternal A particle retroviral sequences which are endogenous to the mouse genome has been shown to be linked to the early G1 phase of the cell cycle in Friend erythroleukemia cells synchronized by density arrest and also in logarithmically growing cells fractionated into cell-cycle compartments by centrifugal elutriation. Regions of homology were found in comparing the LTR sequence to a repetitive Syrian hamster sequence specifically expressed in early G1 in hamster cells.

Dilute-coat-color locus of mice: nucleotide sequence analysis of the d+2J and d+Ha revertant alleles

The unstable dilute-coat-color mutation (d) of DBA/2J mice has been shown to be the result of integration of an ecotropic murine leukemia virus within the mouse genome. Molecular cloning and restriction enzyme analysis of the dilute allele and the viral preintegration site (+ allele), as well as two independent dilute revertants (d+2J and d+Ha), suggested that reversion is due to virus excision occurring by homologous recombination involving the viral long terminal repeats. The DNA sequence has now been determined for the cell-virus junctions of the provirus associated with the d mutation, for the viral preintegration site, and for the two revertant sites. These data (i) indicate that the d mutation was caused by a normal virus integration, (ii) confirm that virus excision occurs by precise homologous recombination, as exactly one long terminal repeat is present in each revertant site, and (iii) suggest that the virus induced the d mutation by integration into a noncoding sequence.

Mutational mechanisms by which an inactive replication origin of bacteriophage M13 is turned on are similar to mechanisms of activation of ras proto-oncogenes

M13 viral strand synthesis is initiated by nicking of the viral strand of the duplex replicative form by the M13 gene II initiator protein at a specific site within a sequence of about 40 base pairs having dyad symmetry. Efficient replication of the M13 viral strand also requires the presence of an adjacent sequence of ca. 100 base pairs. Together these sequences constitute the minimal origin for M13 viral strand synthesis. A pBR322 derivative having a 182-base-pair insert of M13 DNA contains a functional M13 viral strand origin and, when provided with M13 gene functions in trans, replicates under conditions nonpermissive for the parent plasmid. Chimeric plasmids containing deletions within the sequence flanking the viral strand origin are unable to replicate under these conditions. We isolated spontaneous mutants of M13 based on their ability to activate replication of such plasmids. The mutations found in these strains, as well as several produced by oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis, all result in the substitution of any of at least four different amino acids for a specific glycine residue near the amino-terminal end of the initiator protein. Other studies have shown that overproduction of the wild-type initiator protein also restores replication. These alternate mechanisms are discussed in terms of their striking similarity to the mechanisms of activation of the ras proto-oncogenes which can be activated either by increased expression of the wild-type protein or by substitution of any of several amino acids for a glycine residue near the amino terminus.

Characterization of a retrovirus shuttle vector capable of either proviral integration or extrachromosomal replication in mouse cells

A retrovirus shuttle vector is described that contains the dominant selectable neo gene which confers resistance to kanamycin in bacteria and to the drug G418 in animal cells. The bacterial supF gene and the origins of DNA replication from polyomavirus and the ColE1 replicon also have been included in this vector. Infection of normal rodent cells results in single-copy proviral integration, whereas infection of mouse (MOP) cells expressing polyoma large T antigen results in extrachromosomal replication of the DNA form of the virus. The copy number of the extrachromosomal circles in MOP cells varies from 0 to 100 copies per cell. G418-resistant MOP cells lose their drug-resistant phenotype after passage under nonselective conditions, suggesting that maintenance of the extrachromosomal circles is unstable. The extrachromosomal form of the virus can be recovered as plasmids in Escherichia coli. Two-thirds of the circles analyzed were found to be structurally intact. The others have undergone rearrangements including deletions and insertions. The bacterial supF gene was found to be intact in the majority of recovered plasmids. The data presented here suggest that these retroviruses should be useful as gene transfer vectors for animal cells in culture or in vivo.

A comparative analysis of radiation- and virus-induced leukemias in BALB/c mice

Endogenous murine leukemia virus (MuLV) proviral copies were analyzed in thymomas induced in normal BALB/c (Fv-1b) and in Fv-1n congenic mice by X-irradiation. Both strains of mice developed leukemia with similar kinetics, indicating that N-tropism of endogenous MuLV was not a rate-limiting factor in development of disease. Southern blot analysis, using a probe specific for ecotropic virus and for ecotropic-specific sequences retained in pathogenic, env-recombinant viruses, showed that the majority of radiation leukemias lacked newly acquired, clonally integrated, proviruses. This was in contrast to virus-induced leukemias, which routinely exhibited several new proviral integration sites. When an internal proviral DNA restriction fragment was monitored, some radiation leukemias showed evidence of nonclonal infection, accounting for more frequent isolation of infectious virus from such leukemias. Differences in expression of T-cell surface antigens were found in X-ray-induced and virus-induced leukemias. All radiation leukemias were TL positive, whereas virus-induced leukemias were primarily negative for TL. Some differences were also found in Lyt-1 and Lyt-2 expression. The data as a whole suggest that, in the majority of cases, radiation leukemogenesis is not initiated by a viral route--that is, the sort of viral mechanism for which exogenous infection by known pathogenic MuLV is the paradigm.

Analysis of gene expression during hematopoiesis: present and future applications

Recombinant DNA technology now provides the strategies required to identify genes whose expression controls the development of normal and pathologic blood cells. Characterization of the gene families responsible for synthesis of hemoglobins, immunoglobulins, histocompatibility antigens, and cellular enzymes have already, or are about to, provide major insights into the mechanisms producing normal erythroid cells, immunocytes, and immune surface features. Hemoglobinopathies, leukemias, and autoimmune diseases of the bone marrow can now be examined to a degree of detail previously inaccessible to investigators. Oncogene translocation analysis is shedding new light on the pathogenesis of leukemias and lymphomas. Recent basic advances now permit direct cloning and identification of genes in host organisms which express their protein products, thus allowing isolation of genes coding for the hematopoietic surface markers and growth factors which characterize and regulate blood cell progenitors. This review summarizes the molecular genetic approach to analysis of normal and pathologic hematopoiesis, surveys major findings which have resulted, and examines the potential use of refined gene cloning strategies for improved understanding of blood cell development.

Embryonic exposure to aflatoxin-B1: mutagenicity and influence on development and immunity

Chick embryos were mutagenized in ovo in order to study developmentally related alterations in immune functions in survivors of this prenatal toxicant insult. In this experimental system, a single exposure of 6-day chick embryos to 0.1 microgram aflatoxin-B1 (AF-B1) in 10 microliters of acetone was employed, and the control embryos received 10 microliters of solvent alone. This dosage of AF-B1 administered to 6-day embryos was found to increase the incidence of sister chromatid exchanges in blood cells approximately fivefold above the baseline observed in solvent controls. A second sham control, where no solvent was administered, was included in some experiments. The cell cycle times in blood increased slightly during the initial exposure to AF-B1. However, a majority of the AF-B1 and acetone exposed embryos survived and hatched without incident. Losses occurred mainly in the latter part of embryogenesis. After hatching, no significant differences were observed in body weight between different treatment groups up to 26 weeks of age and no change in primary humoral immunity was detected. In contrast, two parameters of cell-mediated immunity, graft vs host (GvH), and cutaneous basophil hypersensitivity (CBH) reactions were both depressed as a result of exposure to AF-B1. The AF-B1 treatment group was significantly reduced in the GvH reaction compared with sham-treated controls. In the CBH assay, AF-B1-exposed chicks showed reduced immunity compared with acetone controls. These results suggest that long-term selective immune depression can occur following embryonic exposure to AF-B1.

A retroviral myc gene induces preneoplastic transformation of lymphocytes in a bursal transplantation assay

Treatment of chicken embryos with cyclophosphamide results in ablation of bursal lymphocytes. Bursal follicles can be reconstructed by infusion of embryonic bursal cells. Histologic examination of reconstituting bursal follicles showed that the first lymphocytes to appear were large pyrinophilic lymphoblasts that lined up adjacent to the bursal basement membrane and appeared to serve as progenitors for the differentiation of bursal medullary lymphocytes. When these cells were infected with the avian myelocytomatosis virus HB1 bearing a v-myc oncogene they appeared to home to the region of the bursal basement membrane but failed to differentiate. Instead, they formed structures indistinguishable from the preneoplastic transformed follicles that develop during bursal lymphomagenesis induced by lymphoid leukosis viruses. The DNA from these transformed follicles contained the HB1 v-myc gene but lacked the ability to transform NIH/3T3 mouse cells. Therefore these preneoplastic lesions were induced directly by HB1 myc and did not require the expression of Blym-1 or similar oncogenes. Exploitation of this transplantation technique with the chicken bursa will provide a useful method for assessing the stage-specific activity of oncogenes in vivo.

Feline glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase cellular mosaicism. Application to the study of retrovirus-induced pure red cell aplasia

Neoplasms result from the uncontrolled proliferation of abnormal or transformed cells. The early stages of this process are difficult to study because of the lack of sensitive and specific markers of clonal evolution in an experimental system. We have developed a cat model using cellular mosaicism for glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PD). Our findings confirm that the structural locus for feline G-6-PD is on the X-chromosome and demonstrate that it is randomly inactivated in somatic cells. Heterozygous cats have balanced ratios of G-6-PD enzyme types in peripheral blood cells and hematopoietic progenitors that remain stable over time. In our initial studies, we used the model to analyze the events surrounding marrow failure experimentally induced by selected strains of feline leukemia virus (FeLV). Two G-6-PD heterozygous cats, one F1 male hybrid and one domestic cat were infected with FeLV (C or KT) and developed pure red cell aplasia (PRCA). Colonies arising from the more mature erythroid colony-forming cell were not detected in marrow culture of anemic animals although erythroid bursts persisted, suggesting that the differentiation of early erythroid progenitors (BFU-E) was inhibited in vivo. The ratio of G-6-PD types in hematopoietic progenitors and peripheral blood cells from the heterozygous cats did not change when the animals developed PRCA. Thus, the anemia did not result from the clonal expansion of a transformed myeloid stem cell. With this experimental approach, one may prospectively assess clonal evolution and cellular interactions in other FeLV-induced diseases.

Cooperation between gene encoding p53 tumour antigen and ras in cellular transformation

The protein p53 is highly expressed in a large variety of transformed cell types originating from diverse species. These include cells transformed by Simian virus 40 (SV40), adenovirus and Abelson virus, as well as a variety of chemically transformed cells. Substantial amounts of p53 are also present in certain non-transformed cells, for example, some embryonic tissues. The protein may be localized in different cellular compartments in normal and transformed cells. The strong correlation between tumorigenicity and high levels of p53 suggests an important role of p53 in tumorigenesis. We report here experiments in which we have co-transfected the murine cellular gene encoding for p53 with a ras gene into primary rat embryo fibroblasts. Our results indicate that the p53-encoding gene can play a causal role in the conversion of normal fibroblasts into tumorigenic cells.

Participation of p53 cellular tumour antigen in transformation of normal embryonic cells

The cellular tumour antigen p53 is found at elevated levels in a wide variety of transformed cells (for reviews see refs 1, 2). Very little is yet known about the precise relationship of p53 to malignant transformation. Although the increase in p53 levels could be a secondary by-product of the transformed state, it is equally possible that p53 is actively involved in altering cellular growth properties, especially as it has been implicated in the regulation of normal cell proliferation. We sought to test whether p53 could behave in a manner similar to known genes in a biological test system, and we demonstrate here that p53 can cooperate with the activated Ha-ras oncogene to transform normal embryonic cells. The resultant foci contain cells of a markedly altered morphology which produce high levels of p53. Cell lines established from such foci elicit tumours in syngeneic animals.

Dilute-coat-color locus of mice: nucleotide sequence analysis of the d+2J and d+Ha revertant alleles

The unstable dilute-coat-color mutation (d) of DBA/2J mice has been shown to be the result of integration of an ecotropic murine leukemia virus within the mouse genome. Molecular cloning and restriction enzyme analysis of the dilute allele and the viral preintegration site (+ allele), as well as two independent dilute revertants (d+2J and d+Ha), suggested that reversion is due to virus excision occurring by homologous recombination involving the viral long terminal repeats. The DNA sequence has now been determined for the cell-virus junctions of the provirus associated with the d mutation, for the viral preintegration site, and for the two revertant sites. These data (i) indicate that the d mutation was caused by a normal virus integration, (ii) confirm that virus excision occurs by precise homologous recombination, as exactly one long terminal repeat is present in each revertant site, and (iii) suggest that the virus induced the d mutation by integration into a noncoding sequence.

The tandem direct repeats within the long terminal repeat of murine leukemia viruses are the primary determinant of their leukemogenic potential

To map the viral sequences encoding the leukemogenic determinant(s) of nondefective murine leukemia viruses (MuLVs), we constructed chimeric viral genomes in vitro between cloned viral DNAs from the highly leukemogenic Gross passage A (Gross A) MuLV and from the related nonleukemogenic BALB/c N-tropic MuLV. Infectious chimeric MuLVs, recovered from murine cells microinjected with these DNAs, were inoculated into newborn mice to test the leukemogenic potential of these viruses. We found that the U3 long terminal repeat region from Gross A genomes was sufficient to confer an intermediate leukemogenic potential to chimeric MuLVs. Sequencing data indicated that the U3 tandem direct repeat was responsible for this effect. Adding most of the Gross A p15E-coding sequences to the Gross A U3 long terminal repeat enhanced the leukemogenic potential of chimeric viruses significantly. Adding a larger 3'-end env region (all p15E-coding sequences and 345 base pairs of the carboxy terminus of gp70) to the Gross A U3 long terminal repeat restored the full leukemogenic potential of Gross A MuLV. Chimeric viruses harboring only the Gross A 3'-end env region were, however, nonleukemogenic. Similar chimeric MuLVs, constructed with genomes from the parental weakly leukemogenic BALB/c B-tropic MuLVs and nonleukemogenic BALB/c N-tropic MuLVs, were also studied. Our data indicate that the U3 tandem direct repeat sequences appear to be necessary and sufficient to confer some leukemogenic potential to MuLV. However, env 3'-end sequences, mostly the p15E-encoding sequences, are required for the expression of fully leukemic phenotypes.

Activation of the c-myb locus by viral insertional mutagenesis in plasmacytoid lymphosarcomas

Rearrangement in the c-myb locus of each of four independently derived BALB/c plasmacytoid lymphosarcoma (ABPL's) is due to the insertion of a defective Moloney murine leukemia virus (M-MuLV) into a 1.5-kilobase-pair stretch of cellular DNA at the 5' end of the v-myb-related sequences. This retroviral insertion is associated with abnormal transcription of myb sequences and probably represents a step in the neoplastic transformation of ABPL cells.