Expression of RNA tumor viruses at translation and transcription lebels

Effect of N-methylisatin-beta-4':4'-diethylthiosemicarbazone on intracellular Moloney leukemia virus constituents

N-Methylisatin-beta-4':4'-diethylthiosemicarbazone (M-IBDET) inhibits intracellular production of viral constituents in a mouse cell line, 3T3/MLV, chronically infected with Moloney leukemia virus. Electron microscopic observations confirmed that inhibition of virus production by the drug was not associated with any structural changes in the cell morphology or any damage to the plasma membrane, the site of viral assembly and 'budding'. Treatment of the cells with 17 microM M-IBDET for 6 h inhibited extracellular virus production by 80% but did not affect the level of viral RNA in the cytoplasm or in the plasma membrane. Intracellular reverse transcriptase activity and levels of viral structural proteins were significantly inhibited. Thus, although the drug did not affect viral RNA, it reduced viral protein synthesis.

Accumulation and breakdown of RNA-deficient intracellular virus particles in interferon-treated NIH 3T3 cells chronically producing Moloney murine leukemia virus

Interferon treatment of NIH 3T3 cells chronically infected with Moloney murine leukemia virus inhibited about 95% of virus release. This inhibition was accompanied by a three- to twofold accumulation of intracellular virions. However, this accumulation could be demonstrated only be exogenous reverse transcriptase reaction assay or radioactive labeling of the assembled viral proteins. It could not be shown by the endogenous reverse transcriptase reaction assay, which depended on endogenous viral RNA, or by labeling the encapsidated viral RNA. It was therefore evident that most of the intracellular virions accumulated in interferon-treated cells were RNA deficient. Hybridization analysis revealed that these virions were deficient of genomic viral RNA, whereas size analysis by gel electrophoresis suggested that the deficiency of 4S RNA normally packaged in Moloney murine leukemia virus was even stronger. Our data also suggested that this RNA deficiency was not due to degradation of the encapsidated RNA, but more likely to a defect in virus assembly. RNA-lacking intracellular virions were unstable; they were found to collapse before being released.

Effect of interferon on the formation and release of intracellular virions in NIH/3T3 cells chronically infected with Moloney murine leukemia virus

Using transmission electron microscopy, we demonstrate in this study the existence of intracellular Moloney murine leukemia virus particles in cytoplasmic vacuoles of chronically infected NIH/3T3 cells. Interferon (IFN) treatment for 48 h resulted in a 3-fold higher accumulation of these vacuolar virions. Intracellular virions and their accumulation in IFN-treated cells could also be shown by radioactive labeling of the cells for 48 h and isolation of labeled virus particles from the cytoplasmic fraction of the cells by banding in sucrose gradient. These virions contained typical viral RNA, proteins and glycoproteins, as determined by gel-electrophoresis. Despite their higher accumulation, the formation rate of the intracellular virions, as measured by their pulse labeling for 1 h with S35-methionine, was found to be remarkably lower in IFN-treated cells. In order to elucidate this discrepancy, we followed the kinetics of the intracellular and extracellular virus appearance. We found that the inhibitory effect of IFN on the release of virus particles to the culture medium was much stronger than its effect on the formation of the intracellular virions. This finding can explain the accumulation of intracellular virus particles in IFN-treated cells despite their reduced formation rate.

Effect of interferon on assembly of intracellular Moloney murine leukemia virus particles in chronically infected 3T3/NIH cells

The effect of interferon (IFN) on virus release and on assembly of intracellular virions in 3T3/NIH cells chronically infected with Moloney murine leukemia virus was studied by short labeling with 3H-leucine (viral proteins), 3H-glucosamine (viral glycoproteins) and 3H-uridine (vital RNA). With all of these labels, IFN pretreatment was found to strongly inhibit extracellular virus release. No difference was found between the extent of labeling of viral proteins and glycoproteins of intracellular virions. Incorporation of 3H-uridine into intracellular virions was strongly reduced by the IFN pretreatment. Since it is rather unlikely that encapsidated RNA is significantly degraded during the relatively short time of label incorporation, this finding suggests that IFN interferes with packaging of viral RNA. The effect of IFN on virus release and on 3H-uridine labeling of intracellular virion were found to develop with the same kinetics, though the maximal inhibition of virus release was stronger.

Rapid purification of extracellular and intracellular Moloney murine leukemia virus

The present study demonstrates the advantages of a combination of concentration by polyethylene glycol-6000 and Sepharose Cl-4B chromatography as a rapid procedure for retroviruses purification. This procedure can be completed within 3 hours, providing a high degree of virus purification with minimal damage to its structural and biological properties. Using transmission electron microscopy we observed many intracellular type-C virions in cytoplasmic vacuoles of 3T3/NIH cells chronically infected with Moloney murine leukemia virus. There intracellular virions could be isolated from postmitochondrial cytoplasmic fractions prepared from the infected cells by a procedure which minimized its contamination by extracellular free or membrane-bound virions. SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis showed that the intracellular and extracellular virions contained similar protein composition.

Transcription of Friend virus proviral sequences in isolated nuclei

Transcription studies using isolated Friend nuclei and Escherichia coli polymerase are presented. Combination of the techniques of thiol-Sepharose chromatography and cDNA-Sepharose hybridisation has resulted in a system in which the transcription of the Friend virus proviral sequences with endogenous and E. coli polymerase can be examined. The results show that the percentage of Friend viral-specific sequences in RNA transcribed by E. coli RNA polymerase and by endogenous RNA polymerase in isolated nuclei are similar. The percentage of viral-specific sequences synthesized in isolated nuclei is similar to that found in Friend cell nuclear RNA.

Biochemical evidence for a separate, MHC-linked locus encoding H-2.28 antigens

In comparing the tryptic peptide maps of the H-2L and H-2D glycoprotein antigens isolated from NP-40 lysates of RADA1 (H-2 alpha) leukemic cells, no more than 37% of the observed arginine-containing tryptic peptides are found to be homologous. Thus, the primary amino-acid sequences of these two antigens are probably less than 90% homologous. This constitutes the strongest evidence to date that the MHC-linked H-2L region encodes H-2L antigens separately from the H-2D region, even though H-2L antigens bear D-end-associated antigenic determinants of the H-2.28 family. The anti-H-2.28 alloantiserum (k X r anti h2) used to precipitate H-2L antigens in this investigation was the NIH contract antiserum D28b. As the tryptic peptide maps also suprisingly revealed, D28b precipitates H-2D antigens as well and, thus, anti-H-2.4 immunoadsorbants were employed to isolate H-2L free of H-2D antigens. In light of the dual specificity of D28b, its reactivity with BALB/c-H-2dm2 mutant cells was re-examined. Even though mutant lymphocytes, which lack H-2L but not H-2D antigens, are not cytotoxically lysed by D28b (as are parental H-2d cells), D28b appears to precipitate H-2D antigens from NP-40 extracts of mutant splenocytes.

On pre-messenger RNA and transcriptions. A review

From the present review integrating old and new data emerge a few principles of gene expression in eukaryotes, and an infinite variety of possible mechanistic details generating the overal pattern. The few principles, most of which are not fundamentally new, may thus be summarized. 1) The eukaryotic genome is subdivided into transcriptional units: into transcriptons which are subject to individual activation controlled at DNA level. 2) Viral genomes may contain one or a few transcriptons, while cells of multicellular organisms contain from 3 x 10(3) in diptera up to an estimated 2 x 10(5) in birds and mammals. 3) Transcriptons may include one or several coding sequences. 4) Transcriptons vary considerably in size: in mammals and birds their size spectrum falls into the 2,000 to 20,000 bp range. 5) Units of coding information constituting one message (genes) and, possibly, units of regulative information are frequently broken up and stored within the transcripton in sub-genic blocks (of so far unknown significance) in general located at a certain distance from the 5' and 3' transcript terminals which are determined by the promotor and terminator signals. 6) The gene, in its specific definition as the functional unit underlying the phenotype, is in general constituted posttranscriptionally by the processing mechanisms from the mosaic of its genomic subunits in the transcripton; segments of coding, service and regulative sequences are recombined within themselves and with each other, polygenic transcripts separate into their unit messages. 7) Activated transcriptons produce pre-mRNA; these primary transcripts are colinear with the DNA of the transcriptional unit. 8) Primary pre-mRNA is processed into secondary pre-mRNA's by extragenic cleavage and intragenic ("splicing") processing, giving rise stepwise to functional mRNA. During this process chemical modifications as methylation, 5'-terminal capping and 3'-terminal polyadenylation take place. 9) Translation yields either potentially functional polypeptides or polycistronic polyproteins subject to further processing. 10) Processing is a regulated process; it involves many of the possible phases and mechanisms of post-transcriptional regulation (cf. 39, 40).