In vitro squelching of activated transcription by serum response factor: evidence for a common coactivator used by multiple transcriptional activators

Mechanosensing dysregulation in the fibroblast: A hallmark of the aging heart

The myofibroblast is a specialized fibroblast that expresses α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and participates in wound contraction and fibrosis. The fibroblast to myofibroblast transition depends on chemical and mechanical signals. A fibroblast senses the changes in the environment (extracellular matrix (ECM)) and transduces these changes to the cytoskeleton and the nucleus, resulting in activation or inhibition of α-SMA transcription in a process called mechanosensing. A stiff matrix greatly facilitates the transition from fibroblast to myofibroblast, and although the aging heart is much stiffer than the young one, the aging fibroblast has difficulties in transitioning into the contractile phenotype. This suggests that the events occurring downstream of the matrix, such as activation or changes in expression levels of various proteins participating in mechanotransduction can negatively alter the ability of the aging fibroblast to become a myofibroblast. In this review, we will discuss in detail the changes in ECM, receptors (integrin or non-integrin), focal adhesions, cytoskeleton, and transcription factors involved in mechanosensing that occur with aging.

Phenotypic variation reveals sites of evolutionary constraint in the androgenic signaling pathway

Steroid hormone systems play an important role in shaping the evolution of vertebrate sexual traits, but several aspects of this relationship remain unclear. For example, we currently know little about how steroid signaling complexes are adapted to accommodate the emergence of behavior in response to sexual selection. We use downy woodpeckers (Dryobates pubescens) to evaluate how the machinery underlying androgen action can evolve to accommodate this bird's main territorial signal, the drum. We focus specifically on modifications to androgenic mechanisms in the primary neck muscle that actuates the hammering movements underlying this signal. Of the signaling components we examine, we find that levels of circulating testosterone (T) and androgen receptor (AR) expression are consistently increased in a way that likely enhances androgenic regulation of drumming. By contrast, the expression of nuclear receptor co-factors-the 'molecular rheostats' of steroid action-show no such relationship in our analyses. If anything, co-factors are expressed in directions that would presumably hinder androgenic regulation of the drum. These findings therefore collectively point to T levels and AR as the more evolutionarily labile components of the androgenic system, in that they are likely more apt to change over time to support sexual selection for territorial signaling in woodpeckers. Yet the signaling elements that fine-tune AR's functional effects on the genome-namely the receptor's transcriptional co-factors-do not change in such a manner, and thus may be under tighter evolutionary constraint.

The acidic activation domain of the Epstein-Barr virus transcription factor R interacts in vitro with both TBP and TFIIB and is cell-specifically potentiated by a proline-rich region

In cells latently infected with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), the expression of two viral transactivators, EB1 and R, is responsible for the switch from latency to a productive cycle. R contains a DNA-binding/dimerization domain localized at the N-terminus. The domain required for transcriptional activation is localized at the C-terminus and contains two regions of very different amino acid composition. The first is very rich in prolines, whereas the second is rich in acidic residues and contains two potential alpha-helices. We investigated the activation potential of these subregions when linked to the heterologous Gal4 DNA-binding domain. We found that the acidic region--more precisely, the second putative alpha-helix--is an activating domain. In contrast, the proline-rich region is insufficient by itself for activation but collaborates with the acidic region in a cell-specific manner to make transactivation more efficient. We demonstrated that R interacts in vitro with the basal transcription factors TBP and TFIIB, and that the acidic domain of R mediates these interactions.

Cofactor squelching: Artifact or fact?

Cofactor squelching is the term used to describe competition between transcription factors (TFs) for a limited amount of cofactors in a cell with the functional consequence that TFs in a given cell interfere with the activity of each other. Since cofactor squelching was proposed based primarily on reporter assays some 30 years ago, it has remained controversial, and the idea that it could be a physiologically relevant mechanism for transcriptional repression has not received much support. However, recent genome-wide studies have demonstrated that signal-dependent TFs are very often absent from the enhancers that are acutely repressed by those signals, which is consistent with an indirect mechanism of repression such as squelching. Here we review these recent studies in the light of the classical studies of cofactor squelching, and we discuss how TF cooperativity in so-called hotspots and super-enhancers may sensitize these to cofactor squelching.

Thresholds and ultrasensitivity from negative cooperativity

Negative cooperativity is a phenomenon in which the binding of one or more molecules of a ligand to a multimeric receptor makes it more difficult for subsequent ligand molecules to bind. Negative cooperativity can make a multimeric receptor's response more graded than it would otherwise be. However, through theory and experimental results, we show that if the ligand binds the receptor with high affinity and can be appreciably depleted by receptor binding, then negative cooperativity produces a qualitatively different type of response: a highly ultrasensitive response with a pronounced threshold. Because ultrasensitivity and thresholds are important for generating various complex systems-level behaviors, including bistability and oscillations, negative cooperativity may be an important ingredient in many types of biological responses.

The Prozone Effect Accounts for the Paradoxical Function of the Cdk-Binding Protein Suc1/Cks

Previous work has shown that Suc1/Cks proteins can promote the hyperphosphorylation of primed Cdk1 substrates through the formation of ternary Cdk1-Cks-phosphosubstrate complexes. This raises the possibility that Cks proteins might be able to both facilitate and interfere with hyperphosphorylation through a mechanism analogous to the prozone effect in antigen-antibody interactions, with substoichiometric Cks promoting the formation of Cdk1-Cks-phosphosubstrate complexes and suprastoichiometric Cks instead promoting the formation of Cdk1-Cks and Cks-phosphosubstrate complexes. We tested this hypothesis through a combination of theory, proof-of-principle experiments with oligonucleotide annealing, and experiments on the interaction of Xenopus cyclin B1-Cdk1-Cks2 with Wee1A in vitro and in Xenopus extracts. Our findings help explain why both Cks under-expression and overexpression interfere with cell-cycle progression and provide insight into the regulation of the Cdk1 system.

Regulation of Connective Tissue Growth Factor and Cardiac Fibrosis by an SRF/MicroRNA-133a Axis

Myocardial fibrosis contributes to the remodeling of heart and the loss of cardiac function leading to heart failure. SRF is a transcription factor implicated in the regulation of a large variety of genes involved in cardiac structure and function. To investigate the impact of an SRF overexpression in heart, we developed a new cardiac-specific and tamoxifen-inducible SRF overexpression mouse model by the Cre/loxP strategy. Here, we report that a high level overexpression of SRF leads to severe modifications of cardiac cytoarchitecture affecting the balance between cardiomyocytes and cardiac fibroblasts and also a profound alteration of cardiac gene expression program. The drastic development of fibrosis was characterized by intense sirius red staining and associated with an increased expression of genes encoding extracellular matrix proteins such as fibronectin, procollagen type 1α1 and type 3α1 and especially connective tissue growth factor (CTGF). Furthermore miR-133a, one of the most predominant cardiac miRNAs, is strongly downregulated when SRF is overexpressed. By comparison a low level overexpression of SRF has minor impact on these different processes. Investigation with miR-133a, antimiR-133a and AdSRF-VP16 experiments in H9c2 cardiac cells demonstrated that: 1)–miR-133a acts as a repressor of SRF and CTGF expression; 2)–a simultaneous overexpression of SRF by AdSRF-VP16 and inhibition of miR-133a by a specific antimiR increase CTGF expression; 3)–miR-133a overexpression can block the upregulation of CTGF induced by AdSRF-VP16. Taken together, these findings reveal a key role of the SRF/CTGF/miR-133a axis in the regulation of cardiac fibrosis.

Phosphorylation and SCF-mediated degradation regulate CREB-H transcription of metabolic targets

CREB‑H, an endoplasmic reticulum-anchored transcription factor, plays a key role in regulating secretion and in metabolic and inflammatory pathways, but how its activity is modulated remains unclear. We examined processing of the nuclear active form and identified a motif around S87-S90 with homology to DSG-type phosphodegrons. We show that this region is subject to multiple phosphorylations, which regulate CREB-H stability by targeting it to the SCF(Fbw1a) E3 ubiquitin ligase. Data from phosphatase treatment, use of phosophospecific antibody, and substitution of serine residues demonstrate phosphorylation of candidate serines in the region, with the core S87/S90 motif representing a critical determinant promoting proteasome-mediated degradation. Candidate kinases CKII and GSK-3b phosphorylate CREB-H in vitro with specificities for different serines. Prior phosphorylation with GSK-3 at one or more of the adjacent serines substantially increases S87/S90-dependent phosphorylation by CKII. In vivo expression of a dominant-negative Cul1 enhances steady-state levels of CREB‑H, an effect augmented by Fbw1a. CREB-H directly interacts with Fbw1a in a phosphorylation-dependent manner. Finally, mutations within the phosphodegron, when incorporated into the full-length protein, result in increased levels of constitutively cleaved nuclear protein and increased transcription and secretion of a key endogenous target gene, apolipoprotein A IV.

The objectivity of reporters: interference between physically unlinked promoters affects reporter gene expression in transient transfection experiments

Despite inherent limitations, the ease and rapidity of their use make transiently expressed reporter gene assays the most frequently used techniques for analyzing promoters and transcriptional regulators. The results of transient reporter gene assays are generally accepted to reflect transcriptional processes correctly, though these assays study regulatory sequences outside of the chromosomal environment and draw conclusions on transcription based on enzyme activity determination. For transient reporter gene assays, often more than one promoter is introduced into one cell. In addition to the one driving the primary reporter gene expression, a further one might serve to ensure the production of an internal control second reporter or/and a trans-acting factor. We demonstrate here by various examples that interference between physically unlinked promoters can profoundly affect reporter expression. Results of reporter gene assays performed by combinations of the cytomegalovirus promoter and various other promoter constructs (human immunodeficiency virus [HIV], Human T-cell Leukemia Virus Type I (HTLV-I), NF-κB-responsive, and p53-responsive) and trans-activator factors (HIV-Tat and p53) in different host cell lines (U2OS, HeLa, and L929) prove that interference between active transcription units can modify transcription responses dramatically. Since the interference depends on the promoters used, on the amount of transfected DNA, on the host cells, and on other factors, extra caution is required in interpreting results of transient reporter gene assays.

Transgenic overexpression of the transcription factor Nkx6.1 in β-cells of mice does not increase β-cell proliferation, β-cell mass, or improve glucose clearance

The loss or dysfunction of the pancreatic endocrine β-cell results in diabetes. Recent innovative therapeutic approaches for diabetes aim to induce β-cell proliferation in vivo by pharmacological intervention. Based on the finding that overexpression of the transcription factor Nkx6.1 in islets in vitro increases β-cell proliferation while maintaining β-cell function, Nkx6.1 has been proposed as a potential target for diabetes therapy. However, it is unknown whether elevated Nkx6.1 levels in β-cells in vivo have similar effects as observed in isolated islets. To this end, we sought to investigate whether overexpression of Nkx6.1 in β-cells in vivo could increase β-cell mass and/or improve β-cell function in normal or β-cell-depleted mice. Using a bigenic inducible Cre-recombinase-based transgenic model, we analyzed the effects of Nkx6.1 overexpression on β-cell proliferation, β-cell mass, and glucose metabolism. We found that mice overexpressing Nkx6.1 in β-cells displayed similar β-cell proliferation rates and β-cell mass as control mice. Furthermore, after partial β-cell ablation, Nkx6.1 overexpression was not sufficient to induce β-cell regeneration under either nondiabetic or diabetic conditions. Together these results demonstrate that sustained Nkx6.1 overexpression in vivo does not stimulate β-cell proliferation, expand β-cell mass, or improve glucose metabolism in either normal or β-cell-depleted pancreata. Thus, raising cellular Nkx6.1 levels in β-cells in vivo is unlikely to have a positive impact on type 2 diabetes.

Nuclear import of serum response factor in airway smooth muscle

We have previously shown that the transcription-promoting activity of serum response factor (SRF) is partially regulated by its extranuclear redistribution. In this study, we examined the cellular mechanisms that facilitate SRF nuclear entry in canine tracheal smooth muscle cells. We used in vitro pull-down assays to determine which karyopherin proteins bound SRF and found that SRF binds KPNA1 and KPNB1 through its nuclear localization sequence. Immunoprecipitation studies also demonstrated direct SRF-KPNA1 interaction in HEK293 cells. Import assays demonstrated that KPNA1 and KPNB1 together were sufficient to mediate rapid nuclear import of SRF-GFP. Our studies also suggest that SRF is able to gain nuclear entry through an auxiliary, nuclear localization sequence-independent mechanism.

RhoA-ROCK signaling is involved in contraction-mediated inhibition of SERCA2a expression in cardiomyocytes

In neonatal ventricular cardiomyocytes (NVCM), decreased contractile activity stimulates sarco-endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase2a (SERCA2a), analogous to reduced myocardial load in vivo. This study investigated in contracting NVCM the role of load-dependent RhoA-ROCK signaling in SERCA2a regulation. Contractile arrest of NVCM resulted in low peri-nuclear localized RhoA levels relative to contracting NVCM. In arrested NVCM, ROCK activity was decreased (59%) and paralleled a loss in F-actin levels. Y-27632-induced ROCK inhibition in contracting NVCM increased SERCA2a messenger RNA expression by 150%. This stimulation was transcriptional, as evident from transfections with the SERCA2a promoter. A reciprocal effect of Y-27632 treatment on the promoter activity of atrial natriuretic factor was observed. SERCA2a transcription was not altered by co-transfection of the RhoA-ROCK-dependent serum response factor (SRF) alone or in combination with myocardin. Furthermore, GATA4, another ROCK-dependent transcription factor, induced rather than repressed SERCA2a transcription. This study shows that contractile activity suppresses SERCA2a gene expression via RhoA-ROCK-dependent transcription modulation. This modulation is likely to be accomplished by a transcription factor other than SRF, myocardin, or GATA4.

Depletion of cAMP-response Element-binding Protein/ATF1 Inhibits Adipogenic Conversion of 3T3-L1 Cells Ectopically Expressing CCAAT/Enhancer-binding Protein (C/EBP) α, C/EBP β, or PPARγ2

The differentiation of preadipocytes to adipocytes is orchestrated by the expression of the "master adipogenic regulators," CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein (C/EBP) beta, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma), and C/EBP alpha. In addition, activation of the cAMP-response element-binding protein (CREB) is necessary and sufficient to promote adipogenic conversion and prevent apoptosis of mature adipocytes. In this report we used small interfering RNA to deplete CREB and the closely related factor ATF1 to explore the ability of the master adipogenic regulators to promote adipogenesis in the absence of CREB and probe the function of CREB in late stages of adipogenesis. Loss of CREB/ATF1 blocked adipogenic conversion of 3T3-L1 cells in culture or 3T3-F442A cells implanted into athymic mice. Loss of CREB/ATF1 prevented the expression of PPARgamma, C/EBP alpha, and adiponectin and inhibited the loss of Pref-1. Loss of CREB/ATF1 inhibited adipogenic conversion even in cells ectopically expressing C/EBP alpha, C/EBP beta, or PPARgamma2 individually. CREB/ATF1 depletion did not attenuate lipid accumulation in cells expressing both PPARgamma2 and C/EBP alpha, but adiponectin expression was severely diminished. Conversely ectopic expression of constitutively active CREB overcame the blockade of adipogenesis due to depletion of C/EBP beta but not due to loss of PPARgamma2 or C/EBP alpha. Depletion of CREB/ATF1 did not suppress the expression of C/EBP beta as we had previously observed using dominant negative forms of CREB. Finally results are presented showing that CREB promotes PPARgamma2 gene transcription. The results indicate that CREB and ATF1 play a central role in adipogenesis because expression of individual master adipogenic regulators is unable to compensate for their loss. The data also indicate that CREB not only functions during the initiation of adipogenic conversion but also at later stages.

Bone morphogenetic protein-induced MSX1 and MSX2 inhibit myocardin-dependent smooth muscle gene transcription

During the onset and progression of atherosclerosis, the vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) phenotype changes from differentiated to dedifferentiated, and in some cases, this change is accompanied by osteogenic transition, resulting in vascular calcification. One characteristic of dedifferentiated VSMCs is the down-regulation of smooth muscle cell (SMC) marker gene expression. Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), which are involved in the induction of osteogenic gene expression, are detected in calcified vasculature. In this study, we found that the BMP2-, BMP4-, and BMP6-induced expression of Msx transcription factors (Msx1 and Msx2) preceded the down-regulation of SMC marker expression in cultured differentiated VSMCs. Either Msx1 or Msx2 markedly reduced the myocardin-dependent promoter activities of SMC marker genes (SM22alpha and caldesmon). We further investigated interactions between Msx1 and myocardin/serum response factor (SRF)/CArG-box motif (cis element for SRF) using coimmunoprecipitation, gel-shift, and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays. Our results showed that Msx1 or Msx2 formed a ternary complex with SRF and myocardin and inhibited the binding of SRF or SRF/myocardin to the CArG-box motif, resulting in inhibition of their transcription.

DeltaEF1 mediates TGF-beta signaling in vascular smooth muscle cell differentiation

Alteration in the differentiated state of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) is known to be integral to vascular development and the pathogenesis of vascular disease. However, it is still largely unknown how environmental cues translate into transcriptional control of SMC genes. We found that deltaEF1 is upregulated during SMC differentiation and selectively transactivates the promoters of SMC differentiation marker genes, SM alpha-actin and SM myosin heavy chain (SM-MHC). DeltaEF1 physically interacts with SRF and Smad3, resulting in a synergistic activation of SM alpha-actin promoter. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays and knockdown experiments showed that deltaEF1 is involved in the control of the SMC differentiation programs induced by TGF-beta signaling. Overexpression of deltaEF1 inhibited neointima formation and promoted SMC differentiation, whereas heterozygous deltaEF1 knockout mice exhibited exaggerated neointima formation. It thus appears deltaEF1 mediates SMC differentiation via interaction with SRF and Smad3 during development and in vascular disease.

Improved transcriptional activators and their use in mis-expression traps in Arabidopsis

The synthetic transcription factor LhG4 has been used in numerous mis-expression studies in plants. We show that the sequence encoding the LhG4 activation domain, derived from Saccharomyces cerevisiae GAL4, contains several cryptic polyadenylation signals in Arabidopsis. The GAL4-derived sequence was modified according to preferred Arabidopsis codon usage, generating LhG4AtO which was faithfully transcribed in Arabidopsis plants. In protoplasts, LhG4AtO achieved maximum transactivation of the pOp promoter with 10-fold less input DNA than LhG4. The same methods were used to compare 10 other LhG4 derivatives that carried alternative natural or synthetic activation domains. Lh214 and Lh314, which contain synthetic activation domains comprising trimers of a core acidic activation domain, directed threefold more GUS expression from the pOp promoter with 20-fold less input DNA than LhG4. In contrast, when expressed from the CaMV 35S promoter in transgenic plants carrying a pOp-GUS reporter, Lh214 and Lh314 yielded transformants with substantially lower GUS activities than other constructs including LhG4AtO and LhG4 which performed similarly. When incorporated into an enhancer-trapping vector, however, LhG4AtO and Lh314 yielded enhancer traps with approximately twice the frequency of LhG4, suggesting that the modified activation domains offer improved performance when expressed from weaker transcription signals. To increase the number of LhG4 patterns available for mis-expression studies, we describe a population of enhancer-trap lines obtained with LhG4AtO in a pOp-GUS background. We show that enhancer-trap lines can transactivate an unlinked pOp-green fluorescent protein (pOp-GFP) reporter in the pattern predicted by staining for GUS activity.

Imbalanced Plasminogen System in Lymphangioleiomyomatosis

Pulmonary lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) is characterized by abnormal smooth muscle-like cell (LAM cell) proliferation leading to tissue destruction. We previously demonstrated that serum response factor (SRF), a critical smooth muscle transcription factor, is highly expressed in LAM cells. Here we show that a high SRF level alters the plasminogen (Plg) system. Specifically, overexpression of SRF in human lung fibroblasts upregulated urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) and its substrate Plg, whereas it downregulated plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI)-1. Because uPA cleaves Plg into plasmin, which activates matrix metalloproteinases (MMP), the end result was an increase in MMP activity. To determine whether uPA, Plg, and PAI-1 were abnormally expressed in LAM in vivo, we immunostained 12 LAM cases. In all cases, the LAM lesions showed stronger immunoreaction for uPA and Plg than the surrounding normal lung parenchyma. On the contrary, PAI-1 was absent in LAM lesions, whereas it was ubiquitous in normal lung parenchyma. Microdissection-based reverse transcriptase/polymerase chain reaction further confirmed upregulation of uPA and Plg and downregulation of PAI-1 message in LAM. Altogether, our findings suggest that the high SRF level seen in LAM contributes to extracellular matrix degradation and progressive LAM cell infiltration of the lung.

Dual role of PKA in phenotypic modulation of vascular smooth muscle cells by extracellular ATP

Extracellular ATP is released from activated platelets and endothelial cells and stimulates proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC). We found that ATP stimulates a profound but transient activation of protein kinase A (PKA) via purinergic P2Y receptors. The specific inhibition of PKA by adenovirus-mediated transduction of the PKA inhibitor (PKI) attenuates VSMC proliferation in response to ATP, suggesting a positive role for transient PKA activation in VSMC proliferation. By contrast, isoproterenol and forskolin, which stimulate a more sustained PKA activation, inhibit VSMC growth as expected. On the other hand, the activity of serum response factor (SRF) and the SRF-dependent expression of smooth muscle (SM) genes, such as SM-alpha-actin and SM22, are extremely sensitive to regulation by PKA, and even transient PKA activation by ATP is sufficient for their downregulation. Analysis of the dose responses of PKA activation, VSMC proliferation, SRF activity, and SM gene expression to ATP, with or without PKI overexpression, suggests the following model for the phenotypic modulation of VSMC by ATP, in which the transient PKA activation plays a critical role. At low micromolar doses, ATP elicits a negligible effect on DNA synthesis but induces profound SRF activity and SM gene expression, thus promoting the contractile VSMC phenotype. At high micromolar doses, ATP inhibits SRF activity and SM gene expression and promotes VSMC growth in a manner dependent on transient PKA activation. Transformation of VSMC by high doses of ATP can be prevented and even reversed by inhibition of PKA activity.

Inhibitory cardiac transcription factor, SRF-N, is generated by caspase 3 cleavage in human heart failure and attenuated by ventricular unloading

BACKGROUND

Knowledge about molecular mechanisms leading to heart failure is still limited, but reduced gene activities and modest activation of caspase 3 are hallmarks of end-stage heart failure. We postulated that serum response factor (SRF), a central cardiac transcription factor, might be a cleavage target for modest activated caspase 3, and this cleavage of SRF may play a dominant inhibitory role in propelling hearts toward failure.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We examined SRF protein levels from cardiac samples taken at the time of transplantation in 13 patients with end-stage heart failure and 7 normal hearts. Full-length SRF was markedly reduced and processed into 55- and 32-kDa subfragments in all failing hearts. SRF was intact in normal samples. In contrast, the hearts of 10 patients with left ventricular assist devices showed minimal SRF fragmentation. Specific antibodies to N- and C-terminal SRF sequences and site-directed mutagenesis revealed 2 alternative caspase 3 cleavage sites, so that 2 fragments were detected of each containing either the N- or C-terminal SRF. Expression of SRF-N, the 32-kDa fragment, in myogenic cells inhibited the transcriptional activity of alpha-actin gene promoters by 50% to 60%, which suggests that truncated SRF functioned as a dominant-negative transcription factor.

CONCLUSIONS

Caspase 3 activation in heart failure sequentially cleaved SRF and generated a dominant-negative transcription factor, which may explain the depression of cardiac-specific genes. Moreover, caspase 3 activation may be reversible in the failing heart with ventricular unloading.

Serum withdrawal leads to reduced aryl hydrocarbon receptor expression and loss of cytochrome P4501A inducibility in PLHC-1 cells

Changes in the expression of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) have been documented in several systems and in response to a variety of treatments. The significance of these findings is unclear, because the effects of such changes on subsequent responses to AHR ligands seldom have been measured. We tested the ability of changes in serum used in cell culture medium to alter expression of the AHR and induction of cytochrome P4501A (CYP1A) in PLHC-1 teleost hepatoma cells. Culture of early-passage cells in serum-free medium for 2 days led to a loss of CYP1A inducibility by 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD). In contrast, culture in 10% delipidated calf serum increased the TCDD-induced levels of both CYP1A protein and enzymatic activity relative to levels in cells cultured in 10% complete calf serum. These effects were consistent between 8 and 24hr post-treatment, indicating that the kinetics of induction were unaffected. In cells cultured in serum-free medium for 1 and 2 days there was a progressive loss of CYP1A inducibility. This loss of response paralleled a time-dependent decline in AHR protein, as measured by specific binding of [3H]TCDD. Using an operational model for AHR action in PLHC-1 cells, the measured reduction in AHR could be shown to predict the loss of CYP1A induction. Expression of AHR protein was unaffected by culture in 10% delipidated serum. The effects of serum-free medium and delipidated serum were found only in early-passage cells; inducibility of CYP1A and expression of AHR protein in late-passage cells were unaffected by serum withdrawal. Comparison of early- and late-passage cells revealed a 2-fold greater rate of proliferation in the latter, suggesting that a growth advantage is coincident with loss of the serum-dependency of AHR expression. These results provide a quantitative link between changes in receptor expression and a downstream response, establishing a foundation for future studies of receptor expression and sensitivity to toxic responses in vitro and in vivo.

Transfection of keratinocytes abrogates detectable DNA-binding activity of CCAAT displacement protein

Transfection of keratinocytes with plasmid DNA leads to the loss of detectable DNA-binding activity of CCAAT displacement protein but not of Yin Yang 1, as monitored by electrophoretic mobility shift assay. This phenomenon was found to be attributable to the presence of plasmid DNA in the nuclear extracts prepared from transfected cells. Treatment of these nuclear extracts with DNase I restored the ability to monitor DNA-binding activity of CDP. This report documents a new pitfall associated with transfection.

Histone deacetylase activity represses gamma interferon-inducible HLA-DR gene expression following the establishment of a DNase I-hypersensitive chromatin conformation

Expression of the retinoblastoma tumor suppressor protein (Rb) is required for gamma interferon (IFN-gamma)-inducible major histocompatibility complex class II gene expression and transcriptionally productive HLA-DRA promoter occupancy in several human tumor cell lines. Treatment of these Rb-defective tumor cell lines with histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors rescued IFN-gamma-inducible HLA-DRA and -DRB mRNA and cell surface protein expression, demonstrating repression of these genes by endogenous cellular HDAC activity. Additionally, Rb-defective, transcriptionally incompetent tumor cells retained the HLA-DRA promoter DNase I-hypersensitive site. Thus, HDAC-mediated repression of the HLA-DRA promoter occurs following the establishment of an apparent nucleosome-free promoter region and before transcriptionally productive occupancy of the promoter by the required transactivators. Repression of HLA-DRA promoter activation by HDAC activity likely involves a YY1 binding element located in the first exon of the HLA-DRA gene. Chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments localized YY1 to the HLA-DRA gene in Rb-defective tumor cells. Additionally, mutation of the YY1 binding site prevented repression of the promoter by HDAC1 and partially prevented activation of the promoter by trichostatin A. Mutation of the octamer element also significantly reduced the ability of HDAC1 to confer repression of inducible HLA-DRA promoter activation. Treatment of Rb-defective tumor cells with HDAC inhibitors greatly reduced the DNA binding activity of Oct-1, a repressor of inducible HLA-DRA promoter activation. These findings represent the first evidence that HDAC activity can repress IFN-gamma-inducible HLA class II gene expression and also demonstrate that HDAC activity can contribute to promoter repression following the establishment of a DNase I-hypersensitive chromatin conformation.

Disruption of the actin cytoskeleton regulates cytokine-induced iNOS expression

Interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) induces the inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), resulting in the release of nitric oxide (NO) from glomerular mesangial cells. In this study, we demonstrated that disruption of F-actin formation by sequestration of G-actin with the toxin latrunculin B (LatB) dramatically potentiated IL-1beta-induced iNOS protein expression in a dose-dependent manner. LatB by itself had little or no effect on iNOS expression. Staining of F-actin with nitrobenzoxadiazole (NBD)-phallacidin demonstrated that LatB significantly impaired F-actin stress fiber formation. Jasplakinolide (Jasp), which binds to and stabilizes F-actin, suppressed iNOS expression enhanced by LatB. These data strongly suggest that actin cytoskeletal dynamics regulates IL-1beta-induced iNOS expression. We demonstrated that LatB decreases serum response factor (SRF) activity as determined by reporter gene assays, whereas Jasp increases SRF activity. The negative correlation between SRF activity and iNOS expression suggests a negative regulatory role for SRF in iNOS expression. Overexpression of a dominant negative mutant of SRF increases the IL-1beta-induced iNOS expression, providing direct evidence that SRF inhibits iNOS expression.

Activation of cardiac gene expression by myocardin, a transcriptional cofactor for serum response factor

Serum response factor (SRF) regulates transcription of numerous muscle and growth factor-inducible genes. Because SRF is not muscle specific, it has been postulated to activate muscle genes by recruiting myogenic accessory factors. Using a bioinformatics-based screen for unknown cardiac-specific genes, we identified a novel and highly potent transcription factor, named myocardin, that is expressed in cardiac and smooth muscle cells. Myocardin belongs to the SAP domain family of nuclear proteins and activates cardiac muscle promoters by associating with SRF. Expression of a dominant negative mutant of myocardin in Xenopus embryos interferes with myocardial cell differentiation. Myocardin is the founding member of a class of muscle transcription factors and provides a mechanism whereby SRF can convey myogenic activity to cardiac muscle genes.

Physical interaction between the MADS box of serum response factor and the TEA/ATTS DNA-binding domain of transcription enhancer factor-1

Serum response factor is a MADS box transcription factor that binds to consensus sequences CC(A/T)(6)GG found in the promoter region of several serum-inducible and muscle-specific genes. In skeletal myocytes serum response factor (SRF) has been shown to heterodimerize with the myogenic basic helix-loop-helix family of factors, related to MyoD, for control of muscle gene regulation. Here we report that SRF binds to another myogenic factor, TEF-1, that has been implicated in the regulation of a variety of cardiac muscle genes. By using different biochemical assays such as affinity precipitation of protein, GST-pulldown assay, and coimmunoprecipitation of proteins, we show that SRF binds to TEF-1 both in in vitro and in vivo assay conditions. A strong interaction of SRF with TEF-1 was seen even when one protein was denatured and immobilized on nitrocellulose membrane, indicating a direct and stable interaction between SRF and TEF-1, which occurs without a cofactor. This interaction is mediated through the C-terminal subdomain of MADS box of SRF encompassing amino acids 204-244 and the putative 2nd and 3rd alpha-helix/beta-sheet configuration of the TEA/ATTS DNA-binding domain of TEF-1. In the transient transfection assay, a positive cooperative effect of SRF and TEF-1 was observed when DNA-binding sites for both factors, serum response element and M-CAT respectively, were intact; mutation of either site abolished their synergistic effect. Similarly, an SRF mutant, SRFpm-1, defective in DNA binding failed to collaborate with TEF-1 for gene regulation, indicating that the synergistic trans-activation function of SRF and TEF-1 occurs via their binding to cognate DNA-binding sites. Our results demonstrate a novel association between SRF and TEF-1 for cardiac muscle gene regulation and disclose a general mechanism by which these two super families of factors are likely to control diversified biological functions.

Serum response factor-GATA ternary complex required for nuclear signaling by a G-protein-coupled receptor

Endothelins are a family of biologically active peptides that are critical for development and function of neural crest-derived and cardiovascular cells. These effects are mediated by two G-protein-coupled receptors and involve transcriptional regulation of growth-responsive and/or tissue-specific genes. We have used the cardiac ANF promoter, which represents the best-studied tissue-specific endothelin target, to elucidate the nuclear pathways responsible for the transcriptional effects of endothelins. We found that cardiac-specific response to endothelin 1 (ET-1) requires the combined action of the serum response factor (SRF) and the tissue-restricted GATA proteins which bind over their adjacent sites, within a 30-bp ET-1 response element. We show that SRF and GATA proteins form a novel ternary complex reminiscent of the well-characterized SRF-ternary complex factor interaction required for transcriptional induction of c-fos in response to growth factors. In transient cotransfections, GATA factors and SRF synergistically activate atrial natriuretic factor and other ET-1-inducible promoters that contain both GATA and SRF binding sites. Thus, GATA factors may represent a new class of tissue-specific SRF accessory factors that account for muscle- and other cell-specific SRF actions.

Serum response factor-dependent regulation of the smooth muscle calponin gene

Smooth muscle calponin is a multifunctional, thin filament-associated protein whose expression is restricted to smooth muscle cell lineages in developing and postnatal tissues. Although the physiology of smooth muscle calponin has been studied extensively, the cis-elements governing its restricted pattern of expression have yet to be identified. Here we report on smooth muscle-specific enhancer activity within the first intron of smooth muscle calponin. Sequence analysis revealed a proximal consensus intronic CArG box and two distal intronic CArG-like elements, each of which bound recombinant serum response factor (SRF) as well as immunoreactive SRF from smooth muscle nuclear extracts. Site-directed mutagenesis studies suggested that the consensus CArG box mediates much of the intronic enhancer activity; mutating all three CArG elements abolished the ability of SRF to confer enhancer activity on the smooth muscle calponin promoter. Cotransfecting a dominant-negative SRF construct attenuated smooth muscle-specific enhancer activity, and transducing smooth muscle cells with adenovirus harboring the dominant-negative SRF construct selectively reduced steady-state expression of endogenous smooth muscle calponin. These results demonstrate an important role for intronic CArG boxes and the SRF protein in the transcriptional control of smooth muscle calponin in vitro.

Persistent increased DNA-binding and expression of serum response factor occur with epilepsy-associated long-term plasticity changes

We have previously shown that NMDA receptor activation during status epilepticus (SE) is required to produce epilepsy in in vitro and in vivo models. As in human symptomatic epilepsy, the epilepsy in these models is permanent, suggesting that the pathological activation of NMDA receptors causes permanent plasticity changes in the brain. Ca(2+) influx through NMDA receptors is known to transiently activate a key transcription factor, serum response factor (SRF). Thus, we investigated whether this factor, in terms of its expression and ability to bind to the consensus serum response element, was altered long term in the pilocarpine model of epilepsy. In hippocampal nuclear extracts, SRF binding to DNA was significantly increased over saline-injected control rats at 24 hr and at 8 weeks after the onset of SE. This increase was shown to be the result of significantly elevated levels of SRF. DNA binding was also persistently increased in the cortical, but not in the cerebellar, extracts. Hippocampal expression of SRF was localized to neurons using immunohistochemistry. NMDA receptor activation during SE was required for these changes to take place, and the spontaneous seizures seen in epileptic rats did not appear to be responsible for the increase in SRF. The results demonstrate that SRF is persistently elevated after SE in the pilocarpine model of epilepsy and support the theory that long-term gene changes in this model occur and are associated with the long-lasting plasticity changes that are initiated during epileptogenesis.

Persistent increased DNA-binding and expression of serum response factor occur with epilepsy-associated long-term plasticity changes

We have previously shown that NMDA receptor activation during status epilepticus (SE) is required to produce epilepsy in in vitro and in vivo models. As in human symptomatic epilepsy, the epilepsy in these models is permanent, suggesting that the pathological activation of NMDA receptors causes permanent plasticity changes in the brain. Ca(2+) influx through NMDA receptors is known to transiently activate a key transcription factor, serum response factor (SRF). Thus, we investigated whether this factor, in terms of its expression and ability to bind to the consensus serum response element, was altered long term in the pilocarpine model of epilepsy. In hippocampal nuclear extracts, SRF binding to DNA was significantly increased over saline-injected control rats at 24 hr and at 8 weeks after the onset of SE. This increase was shown to be the result of significantly elevated levels of SRF. DNA binding was also persistently increased in the cortical, but not in the cerebellar, extracts. Hippocampal expression of SRF was localized to neurons using immunohistochemistry. NMDA receptor activation during SE was required for these changes to take place, and the spontaneous seizures seen in epileptic rats did not appear to be responsible for the increase in SRF. The results demonstrate that SRF is persistently elevated after SE in the pilocarpine model of epilepsy and support the theory that long-term gene changes in this model occur and are associated with the long-lasting plasticity changes that are initiated during epileptogenesis.

Cooperative transcriptional activation by serum response factor and the high mobility group protein SSRP1

Serum response factor (SRF) is a MADS box transcription factor that controls a wide range of genes involved in cell proliferation and differentiation. The MADS box mediates homodimerization and binding of SRF to the consensus sequence CC(A/T)6GG, known as a CArG box, which is found in the control regions of numerous serum-inducible and muscle-specific genes. Using a modified yeast one-hybrid screen to identify potential SRF cofactors, we found that SRF interacts with the high mobility group factor SSRP1 (structure-specific recognition protein). This interaction, which occurs in yeast and mammalian cells, is mediated through the MADS box of SRF and a basic region of SSRP1 encompassing amino acids 489-542, immediately adjacent to the high mobility group domain. SSRP1 does not bind the CArG box, but interaction of SSRP1 with SRF dramatically increases the DNA binding activity of SRF, resulting in synergistic transcriptional activation of native and artificial SRF-dependent promoters. These results reveal an important role for SSRP1 as a coregulator of SRF-dependent transcription in mammalian cells.

Coactivator PC4 mediates AP-2 transcriptional activity and suppresses ras-induced transformation dependent on AP-2 transcriptional interference

ras oncogene-transformed PA-1 human teratocarcinoma cells have abundant AP-2 mRNA but, paradoxically, little AP-2 transcriptional activity. We have previously shown that overexpression of AP-2 in nontumorigenic variants of PA-1 cells results in inhibition of AP-2 activity and induction of tumorigenicity similar to that caused by ras transformation of PA-1 cells. Evidence indicated the existence of a novel mechanism of inhibition of AP-2 activity involving sequestering of transcriptional coactivators. In this study, we found that PC4 is a positive coactivator of AP-2 and can restore AP-2 activity in ras-transformed PA-1 cells. Relative to vector-transfected ras cell lines, ras cell lines stably transfected with and expressing the PC4 cDNA have a diminished growth rate and exhibit a loss of anchorage-independent growth, and they are unable to induce the formation of tumors in nude mice. These data suggest that a transcriptional coactivator, like a tumor suppressor, can have a growth-suppressive effect on cells. Our experiments are the first to show that ras oncogenes and oncogenic transcription factors can induce transformation through effects on the transcription machinery rather than through specific programs of gene expression.

Influence of promoter potency on the transcriptional effects of YY1, SRF and Msx-1 in transient transfection analysis

Potent viral promoters/enhancers are often used to achieve high level expression of ectopic genes in transient transfection analysis. By using a GAL4-responsive transcription assay system, we show that the use of potent eukaryotic expression vectors can lead to biased transcriptional effects. Three functionally diverse transcription factors, YY1, SRF and Msx-1, were examined and each was found to exhibit a strong transrepression function in the context of the DNA binding domain of GAL4 when expressed from the cytomegalovirus (pCMV) or simian virus 40 (pSV) promoters/enhancers. An internal 15 amino acid domain of YY1 mediating transrepression in the viral promoter setting was identified. This GAL4-mediated transcriptional repression could, however, be completely relieved by using the yeast alcohol dehydrogenase promoter (pADH) to drive gene expression, which is approximately 100-fold weaker than canonical pCMV and pSV in cultured mammalian cells. In addition, low level expression achieved with the pADH vector unveiled the intrinsic transactivation functions of YY1 and SRF previously not observed with the GAL4 assay system. Our results highlight a potential pitfall in conventional pCMV- and pSV-based transfection assays and suggest that the use of a low level expression system may be preferable in most transcriptional analysis.

Interaction of ATF6 and serum response factor

Serum response factor (SRF) is a transcription factor which binds to the serum response element (SRE) in the c-fos promoter. It is required for regulated expression of the c-fos gene as well as other immediate-early genes and some tissue-specific genes. To better understand the regulation of SRF, we used a yeast interaction assay to screen a human HeLa cell cDNA library for SRF-interacting proteins. ATF6, a basic-leucine zipper protein, was isolated by binding to SRF and in particular to its transcriptional activation domain. The binding of ATF6 to SRF was also detected in vitro. An ATF6-VP16 chimera activated expression of an SRE reporter gene in HeLa cells, suggesting that ATF6 can interact with endogenous SRF. More strikingly, an antisense ATF6 construct reduced serum induction of a c-fos reporter gene, suggesting that ATF6 is involved in activation of transcription by SRF. ATF6 was previously partially cloned as a member of the ATF family. The complete cDNA of ATF6 was isolated, and its expression pattern was described.

The adenovirus E4orf6 protein can promote E1A/E1B-induced focus formation by interfering with p53 tumor suppressor function

We have recently shown that the adenovirus type 5 E4orf6 protein interacts with the cellular tumor suppressor protein p53 and blocks p53 transcriptional functions. Here we report that the E4orf6 protein can promote focus formation of primary rodent epithelial cells in cooperation with adenovirus E1A and E1A plus E1B proteins. The E4orf6 protein can also inhibit p53-mediated suppression of E1A plus E1B-19kDa-induced focus formation. Mutant analysis of the E4orf6 protein demonstrates that these activities correlate with the ability of the adenovirus protein to relieve transcriptional repression mediated by the carboxyl-terminal region of p53 in transient transfection assays. We further demonstrate that expression of wild-type E4orf6 correlates with a dramatic reduction of p53 steady-state levels in transformed rat cells. Our data demonstrate that adenovirus type 5 encodes two different proteins, E1B-55kDa and E4orf6, that bind to p53 and contribute to transformation by modulating p53 transcriptional functions.

Recruitment of the tinman homolog Nkx-2.5 by serum response factor activates cardiac alpha-actin gene transcription

We recently showed that the cardiogenic homeodomain factor Nkx-2.5 served as a positive acting accessory factor for serum response factor (SRF) and that together they provided strong transcriptional activation of the cardiac alpha-actin promoter, depending upon intact serum response elements (SREs) (C. Y. Chen, J. Croissant, M. Majesky, S. Topouz, T. McQuinn, M. J. Frankovsky, and R. J. Schwartz, Dev. Genet. 19:119-130, 1996). As shown here, Nkx-2.5 and SRF collaborated to activate the endogenous murine cardiac alpha-actin gene in 10T1/2 fibroblasts by a mechanism in which SRF recruited Nkx-2.5 to the alpha-actin promoter. Activation of a truncated promoter consisting of the proximal alpha-actin SRE1 occurred even when Nkx-2.5 DNA-binding activity was blocked by a point mutation in the third helix of its homeodomain. Investigation of protein-protein interactions showed that Nkx-2.5 was bound to SRF in the absence of DNA in soluble protein complexes retrieved from cardiac myocyte nuclei but could also be detected in coassociated binding complexes on the proximal SRE1. Recruitment of Nkx-2.5 to an SRE depended upon SRF DNA-binding activity and was blocked by the dominant negative SRFpm1 mutant, which allowed for dimerization of SRF monomers but prevented DNA binding. Interactive regions shared by Nkx-2.5 and SRF were mapped to N-terminal/helix I and helix II/helix III regions of the Nkx-2.5 homeodomain and to the N-terminal extension of the MADS box. Our study suggests that physical association between Nkx-2.5 and SRF is one way that cardiac specified genes are activated in cardiac cell lineages.

Activation of the cardiac alpha-actin promoter depends upon serum response factor, Tinman homologue, Nkx-2.5, and intact serum response elements

A murine cardiac specific homeoboxgene, Nkx-2.5/CSX, a potential Drosophila tinman homologue, may have a fundamental role in cardiac myocyte differentiation. DNA binding targets for Nkx-2.5 were recently shown to represent novel homeodomain binding sequences, some of which resembled serum response elements (SREs); [Chen CY, Schwartz RJ (1995): J Biol Chem 270: 15628-15633]. In this study, Nkx-2.5 facilitated serum response factor (SRF) DNA-binding activity to the multiple SREs found on the cardiac alpha-actin promoter and together stimulated cardiac alpha-actin promoter dependent transcription in 10T1/2 fibroblasts. Analysis of cardiac alpha-actin promoter mutants demonstrated the importance of the multiple upstream SREs and an obligatory requirement for an intact proximal SRE1, for providing high levels of activity in the presence of Nkx-2.5 and SRF coexpression. Transfection assays with mutant SRF species indicated that the C-terminal activation domain and DNA-binding MADS box were necessary for transcriptional activity in the presence of Nkx-2.5. Expression of Nkx-2.5 mutants also demonstrated that the homeodomain alone was insufficient for directing promoter activity in the presence of SRF. The central role of SRF in regulating striated alpha-actin gene activity also was revealed by its embryonic expression restricted primarily to myocardium of the developing heart and the myotomal portion of somites. Thus the function of the cardiac actin promoter SREs appeared to provide binding sites for SRF and Nkx-2.5 to interact and elicit striated muscle specific transcription that was independent of the MyoD family.

Characterization of a 1.8-kb DNA segment located upstream from the human Ha-ras protooncogene and possibly regulating its function

We have cloned a 1.8-kb segment of DNA just adjacent to the 5' end of the 6.4-kb BamHI fragment which contains the Ha-ras oncogene (ras1; GenBank notation HUMRASH). Electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSA) indicate the presence of multiple nuclear protein-binding sites within the 1.8-kb segment. At least three putative regulatory protein-binding sites have been identified in a 206-bp subfragment by DNase I footprint analysis. Within the subfragment containing the DNase-protected regions, there is also a segment containing a number of consensus sequences for DNA-binding proteins and two sub-sequences that exhibit strong sequence homology to at least two previously characterized enhancers. These data suggest that a novel set of regulatory elements may lie as far as 2 kb upstream from the normal Ha-ras transcription start points.

The MADS-box family of transcription factors

The MADS-box family of transcription factors has been defined on the basis of primary sequence similarity amongst numerous proteins from a diverse range of eukaryotic organisms including yeasts, plants, insects, amphibians and mammals. The MADS-box is a conserved motif found within the DNA-binding domains of these proteins and the name refers to four of the originally identified members: MCM1, AG, DEFA and SRF. Several proteins within this family have significant biological roles. For example, the human serum-response factor (SRF) is involved in co-ordinating transcription of the protooncogene c-fos, whilst MCM1 is central to the transcriptional control of cell-type specific genes and the pheromone response in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The RSRF/MEF2 proteins comprise a sub-family of this class of transcription factors which are key components in muscle-specific gene regulation. Moreover, in plants, MADS-box proteins such as AG, DEFA and GLO play fundamental roles during flower development. The MADS-box is a contiguous conserved sequence of 56 amino acids, of which 9 are identical in all family members described so far. Several members have been shown to form dimers and consequently two functional regions within the MADS-box have been defined. The N-terminal half is the major determinant of DNA-binding specificity whilst the C-terminal half is necessary for dimerisation. This organisation allows the potential formation of numerous proteins, with subtly different DNA-binding specificities, from a limited number of genes by heterodimerisation between different MADS-box proteins. The majority of MADS-box proteins bind similar sites based on the consensus sequence CC(A/T)6GG although each protein apparently possesses a distinct binding specificity. Moreover, several MADS-box proteins specifically recruit other transcription factors into multi-component regulatory complexes. Such interactions with other proteins appears to be a common theme within this family and play a pivotal role in the regulation of target genes.

The MADS-box family of transcription factors

The MADS-box family of transcription factors has been defined on the basis of primary sequence similarity amongst numerous proteins from a diverse range of eukaryotic organisms including yeasts, plants, insects, amphibians and mammals. The MADS-box is a conserved motif found within the DNA-binding domains of these proteins and the name refers to four of the originally identified members: MCM1, AG, DEFA and SRF. Several proteins within this family have significant biological roles. For example, the human serum-response factor (SRF) is involved in co-ordinating transcription of the protooncogene c-fos, whilst MCM1 is central to the transcriptional control of cell-type specific genes and the pheromone response in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The RSRF/MEF2 proteins comprise a sub-family of this class of transcription factors which are key components in muscle-specific gene regulation. Moreover, in plants, MADS-box proteins such as AG, DEFA and GLO play fundamental roles during flower development. The MADS-box is a contiguous conserved sequence of 56 amino acids, of which 9 are identical in all family members described so far. Several members have been shown to form dimers and consequently two functional regions within the MADS-box have been defined. The N-terminal half is the major determinant of DNA-binding specificity whilst the C-terminal half is necessary for dimerisation. This organisation allows the potential formation of numerous proteins, with subtly different DNA-binding specificities, from a limited number of genes by heterodimerisation between different MADS-box proteins. The majority of MADS-box proteins bind similar sites based on the consensus sequence CC(A/T)6GG although each protein apparently possesses a distinct binding specificity. Moreover, several MADS-box proteins specifically recruit other transcription factors into multi-component regulatory complexes. Such interactions with other proteins appears to be a common theme within this family and play a pivotal role in the regulation of target genes.

Interaction with RAP74 subunit of TFIIF is required for transcriptional activation by serum response factor

A few general transcription factors, in particular TFIID and TFIIB, have been found to bind transcriptional activators. Here we show that the general transcription factor TFIIF is also a target for a transcriptional activator, namely serum response factor (SRF), which binds to the c-fos promoter. Using a yeast interaction assay, we find that SRF binds the RAP74 subunit of TFIIF and that SRF's transcriptional activation domain is the region involved in this binding. Further, RAP74's central charged cluster domain is required for binding to SRF's activation domain. Deletion of this domain impairs RAP74's ability to support SRF-activated transcription in vitro but has little effect on the protein's basal transcription activity or its ability to support SP1-activated transcription. The correlation of SRF-RAP74 binding with transcriptional activation suggests that RAP74 is a critical target for SRF-activated transcription.

Transcriptional repression mediated by the serum response factor

The serum response element (SRE) contributes to transcriptional repression of the c-fos proto-oncogene. We show that the transcription factor SRF is able to repress SRE-dependent transcription, apparently by sequestering a co-activator. Only the DNA-binding core region is required for this SRE-dependent repression. Furthermore the phosphorylation status at potential casein kinase II sites within an N-terminal repression domain affects SRE-independent transcription. SRF may thus pleiotropically influence cellular transcription, representing a novel aspect of SRF function.

Targeting of promoters for trans activation by a carboxy-terminal domain of the NS-1 protein of the parvovirus minute virus of mice

The NS-1 gene of the parvovirus minute virus of mice (MVM) (prototype strain, MVMp) was fused in phase with the sequence coding for the DNA-binding domain of the bacterial LexA repressor. The resulting chimeric protein, LexNS-1, was tested for its transcriptional activity by using various target promoters in which multiple LexA operator sequences had been introduced. Under these conditions, NS-1 was shown to stimulate gene expression driven by the modified long terminal repeat promoters (from the retroviruses mouse mammary tumor virus and Rous sarcoma virus) and P38 promoter (from MVMp), indicating that the NS-1 protein is a potent transcriptional activator. It is noteworthy that in the absence of LexA operator-mediated targeting, the genuine mouse mammary tumor virus and Rous sarcoma virus promoters were inhibited by NS-1. Together these data strongly suggest that NS-1 contains an activating region able to induce promoters with which this protein interacts but also to repress transcription from nonrecognized promoters by a squelching mechanism similar to that described for other activators. Deletion mutant analysis led to the identification of an NS-1 domain that exhibited an activating potential comparable to that of the whole polypeptide when fused to the DNA-binding region of LexA. This domain is localized in the carboxy-terminal part of NS-1 and corresponds to one of the two regions previously found to be responsible for toxicity. These results argue for the involvement of the regulatory functions of NS-1 in the cytopathic effect of this parvovirus product.

Nuclear extracts enhance the interaction of fusion proteins containing the DNA-binding domain of the androgen and glucocorticoid receptor with androgen and glucocorticoid response elements

Comparable fragments of the androgen receptor (AR) (amino acids 540-607) and of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) (amino acids 412-515) were expressed in E. coli as fusion proteins with protein A. Both fusion proteins, denoted ARF1 and GRF1, contain the DNA-binding domain and some flanking amino acids. In vitro binding assays have shown that both fusion proteins interact with androgen/glucocorticoid response elements (ARE/GREs) in an intron fragment of the C3(1) gene of the androgen-regulated rat prostatic binding protein and in the typically glucocorticoid-responsive long terminal repeat (LTR) promoter of mouse mammary tumour virus. Present results indicate that the interaction of both ARF1 and GRF1 with the C3(1) as well as the LTR fragments is enhanced in the presence of nuclear extract. The factor that gives rise to this enhancement appears to be ubiquitous and sensitive to trypsin and temperature treatment. In the C3(1) fragment, the enhancing effect requires the presence of an intact functional ARE/GRE (Core II) as well as a region spanning the ARE/GRE half-site Core I.

Transcriptional activation by the acidic domain of Vmw65 requires the integrity of the domain and involves additional determinants distinct from those necessary for TFIIB binding

In this work we have examined the requirements for activity of the acidic domain of Vmw65 (VP16) by deletion and site-directed mutagenesis of the region in the context of GAL4 fusion proteins. The results indicate that the present interpretation of what actually constitutes the activation domain is not correct. We demonstrate, using a promoter with one target site which is efficiently activated by the wild-type (wt) fusion protein, that amino acids distal to residue 453 are critical for activity. Truncation of the domain or substitution of residues in the distal region almost completely abrogate activity. However, inactivating mutations within the distal region are complemented by using a promoter containing multiple target sites. Moreover, duplication of the proximal region, but not the distal region, restores the ability to activate a promoter with a single target site. These results indicate some distinct qualitative difference between the proximal and distal regions. We have also examined the binding of nuclear proteins to the wt domain and to a variant with the distal region inactivated by mutation. The lack of activity of this variant is not explained by a lack of binding of TFIIB, a protein previously reported to be the likely target of the acidic domain. Therefore some additional function is involved in transcriptional activation by the acid domain, and determinants distinct from those involved in TFIIB binding are required for this function. Analysis of the total protein profiles binding to the wt and mutant domains has demonstrated the selective binding to the wt domain of a 135-kDa polypeptide, which is therefore a candidate component involved in this additional function. This is the first report to provide evidence for the proposal of a multiplicity of interactions within the acidic domain, by uncoupling requirements for one function from those for another.

Transcriptional activation by the acidic domain of Vmw65 requires the integrity of the domain and involves additional determinants distinct from those necessary for TFIIB binding

In this work we have examined the requirements for activity of the acidic domain of Vmw65 (VP16) by deletion and site-directed mutagenesis of the region in the context of GAL4 fusion proteins. The results indicate that the present interpretation of what actually constitutes the activation domain is not correct. We demonstrate, using a promoter with one target site which is efficiently activated by the wild-type (wt) fusion protein, that amino acids distal to residue 453 are critical for activity. Truncation of the domain or substitution of residues in the distal region almost completely abrogate activity. However, inactivating mutations within the distal region are complemented by using a promoter containing multiple target sites. Moreover, duplication of the proximal region, but not the distal region, restores the ability to activate a promoter with a single target site. These results indicate some distinct qualitative difference between the proximal and distal regions. We have also examined the binding of nuclear proteins to the wt domain and to a variant with the distal region inactivated by mutation. The lack of activity of this variant is not explained by a lack of binding of TFIIB, a protein previously reported to be the likely target of the acidic domain. Therefore some additional function is involved in transcriptional activation by the acid domain, and determinants distinct from those involved in TFIIB binding are required for this function. Analysis of the total protein profiles binding to the wt and mutant domains has demonstrated the selective binding to the wt domain of a 135-kDa polypeptide, which is therefore a candidate component involved in this additional function. This is the first report to provide evidence for the proposal of a multiplicity of interactions within the acidic domain, by uncoupling requirements for one function from those for another.