Suppression of the hypomethylated Moloney leukemia virus genome in undifferentiated teratocarcinoma cells and inefficiency of transformation by a bacterial gene under control of the long terminal repeat

Extended analysis of the in vitro tropism of porcine endogenous retrovirus

We previously reported that mitogenic activation of porcine peripheral blood mononuclear cells resulted in production of porcine endogenous retrovirus(es) (PERV[s]) capable of productively infecting human cells (C. Wilson et al., J. Virol. 72:3082-3087, 1998). We now extend that analysis to show that additional passage of isolated virus, named here PERV-NIH, through a human cell line yielded a viral population with a higher titer of infectious virus on human cells than the initial isolate. We show that in a single additional passage on a human cell line, the increase in infectivity for human cells is accounted for by selection against variants carrying pig-tropic envelope sequences (PERV-C) as well as by enrichment for replication-competent genomes. Sequence analysis of the envelope cDNA present in virions demonstrated that the envelope sequence of PERV-NIH is related to but distinct from previously reported PERV envelopes. The in vitro host range of PERV was studied in human primary cells and cell lines, as well as in cell lines from nonhuman primate and other species. This analysis reveals three patterns of susceptibility to infection among these host cells: (i) cells are resistant to infection in our assay; (ii) cells are infected by virus, as viral RNA is detected in the supernatant by reverse transcription-PCR, but the cells are not permissive to productive replication and spread; and (iii) cells are permissive to low-level productive replication. Certain cell lines were permissive for efficient productive infection and spread. These results may prove useful in designing appropriate animal models to assess the in vivo infectivity properties of PERV.

Analysis of the binding proteins and activity of the long terminal repeat of Moloney murine leukemia virus during differentiation of mouse embryonal carcinoma cells

Mouse embryonal carcinoma (EC) cell lines were established which carry the stably integrated chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) gene under the control of the transcriptional elements of the long terminal repeat (LTR) of Moloney murine leukemia virus. The activity of three elements of the stably integrated LTR was analyzed in undifferentiated EC cells (stable CAT assay). Results of the study are summarized as follows. (i) In the stable assay, the promoter region of the LTR was inactive in undifferentiated ECA2 and F9 cells, and the level of the activity was 10(-4) of that in NIH 3T3 cells. (ii) In contrast to the results of the transient assay, the enhancer was active in undifferentiated ECA2 cells and in F9 cells. It activated CAT activity more than 60-fold and about 8-fold in ECA2 cells and F9 cells, respectively. (iii) Suppression by ELP, the embryonal LTR-binding protein, was more pronounced in the stable assay than in the transient assay. These data suggest that, when compared with NIH 3T3 cells, a major factor for the inactivity of the LTR in EC cells is the inefficiency of the promoter in this assay. Transcriptional activity of the LTR was analyzed during the differentiation of EC cells. In the case of ECA2 cells, the magnitude of activation by the enhancer did not change during differentiation. The activity of the promoter increased about 10-fold, and the suppression by ELP became negligible 4 days after the induction of differentiation. Upon differentiation of F9 cells, the activity of the enhancer increased more than 300-fold, but the promoter remained inactive. The pattern of LTR-binding proteins also varied during the differentiation of EC cells. Our present data suggest that the activity of LTR elements as assayed by the stable assay differs from the activity as assayed by the transient assay. It also indicates that the activity of these elements exhibits cell-type-specific changes during the differentiation of EC cells.

Induction of transplantable tumors by repeated subcutaneous injections of natural and synthetic vitamin E in mice and rats

Natural vitamin E and synthetic vitamin E (dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate) were tested for their tumorigenicity in rodents. Transplantable tumors, at the site of injection, were induced by repeated injections of these compounds in two strains of mice, NFS/N and C57BL/6N x C3H/He F1, and in a strain of rats, Fischer 344. Natural vitamin E was tumorigenic in both strains of female mice only when injected with soya oil. In contrast, dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate alone was capable of inducing tumors in Fischer 344 rats. Only one out of 5 male NFS/N mice given dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate developed a tumor. Therefore, Fischer 344 rats were more susceptible to tumor formation by dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate than NFS/N mice. dl-alpha-Tocopheryl acetate with soya oil or with palm oil also resulted in the formation of transplantable tumors in NFS/N mice and Fischer 344 rats. There was no difference in the tumor incidence between mice treated with dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate alone and dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate plus soya oil or palm oil. However, in rats, the incidence was lower for a group treated with dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate plus palm oil than for those with dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate alone and with dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate plus soya oil.

Inactivation of the Moloney murine leukemia virus long terminal repeat in murine fibroblast cell lines is associated with methylation and dependent on its chromosomal position

The expression of a retroviral vector with the Moloney murine leukemia virus (Mo-MuLV) long terminal repeat (LTR) promoter after integration into the genome of murine fibroblast cell lines was monitored with the Escherichia coli-derived beta-galactosidase (beta-gal) gene as the reporter. Monoclonal cell lines derived after retroviral infection exhibited a marked heterogeneity in their expression of the reporter gene. We studied two monoclonal cell lines with a single unrearranged copy of the vector provirus integrated into their genome. The first, BB10, expressed the marker enzyme in only 8% of its cell population, whereas in the second, BB16, beta-gal expression could be detected in over 98% of the cells. Treatment of BB10 with the DNA-demethylating agent 5-azacytidine raised the number of beta-gal-positive cells to over 60%. Transfection experiments showed that the Mo-MuLV LTR promoter-enhancer is potentially fully functional in both the BB10 and BB16 cell lines. The inactivated provirus from BB10 cells was cloned and subsequently used to generate retrovirus stocks. The promoter-enhancer activity of its LTR after infection with these BB10-derived viruses showed a variation similar to that of the original virus stocks. Our data showed that (1) inactivation of the Mo-MuLV LTR is a frequent event in murine fibroblast cell lines, (2) inactivation is associated with de novo methylation of cytidine residues, (3) the frequency of inactivation of the provirus must be determined by its chromosomal position, (4) the process of methylation of sequences within the LTR is not necessarily the same as the transcription-repression mechanism that is operating in undifferentiated embryonal carcinoma cells.

Mechanism of suppression of the long terminal repeat of Moloney leukemia virus in mouse embryonal carcinoma cells

Sequence-specific DNA-binding proteins that bind to the long terminal repeat (LTR) of Moloney leukemia virus in undifferentiated and differentiated mouse embryonal carcinoma (EC) cells were identified by gel retardation assay. The proteins that bind to the CCAAT box were present in both undifferentiated and differentiated EC cells. The amounts and the number of species of the proteins that bind to the enhancer and the GC-rich region were far lower in undifferentiated EC cells than in the differentiated counterparts. These proteins were supposed to be transcriptional activators. Proteins that bind upstream of the enhancer, namely, the -352 to -346 region and the -407 to -404 region, were identified. These proteins were designated the embryonic LTR-binding protein (ELP) and the LTR-binding protein, respectively. The ELP was present only in undifferentiated EC cell lines. The LTR-binding protein was detected in all cell lines tested. The mechanism of suppression of the LTR was investigated by the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase assay. The enhancer and the GC-rich region of the LTR functioned poorly in undifferentiated cells. When eight copies of ELP-binding sequences were inserted upstream of the enhancer region, expression of the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene was reduced about threefold in ECA2 cells. From these data, we concluded that two mechanisms, the shortage of activator proteins and the presence of a negative regulatory protein (ELP), are involved in the suppression of the LTR in undifferentiated EC cells.

Mechanism of suppression of the long terminal repeat of Moloney leukemia virus in mouse embryonal carcinoma cells

Sequence-specific DNA-binding proteins that bind to the long terminal repeat (LTR) of Moloney leukemia virus in undifferentiated and differentiated mouse embryonal carcinoma (EC) cells were identified by gel retardation assay. The proteins that bind to the CCAAT box were present in both undifferentiated and differentiated EC cells. The amounts and the number of species of the proteins that bind to the enhancer and the GC-rich region were far lower in undifferentiated EC cells than in the differentiated counterparts. These proteins were supposed to be transcriptional activators. Proteins that bind upstream of the enhancer, namely, the -352 to -346 region and the -407 to -404 region, were identified. These proteins were designated the embryonic LTR-binding protein (ELP) and the LTR-binding protein, respectively. The ELP was present only in undifferentiated EC cell lines. The LTR-binding protein was detected in all cell lines tested. The mechanism of suppression of the LTR was investigated by the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase assay. The enhancer and the GC-rich region of the LTR functioned poorly in undifferentiated cells. When eight copies of ELP-binding sequences were inserted upstream of the enhancer region, expression of the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene was reduced about threefold in ECA2 cells. From these data, we concluded that two mechanisms, the shortage of activator proteins and the presence of a negative regulatory protein (ELP), are involved in the suppression of the LTR in undifferentiated EC cells.

Generation of continuous large granular lymphocyte lines by interleukin 2 from the spleen cells of mice infected with Moloney leukemia virus. Involvement of interleukin 3

Continuous cell lines could be reproducibly established by culturing spleen cells from adult mice injected with MLV-producer cells or directly infected with Mo-MLV with rIL-2, whereas the culture of normal splenic cells with rIL-2 induced only transient and limited proliferation resulting in no such lines. All of the lines showed morphological characteristics as LGL with Thy-1+,Lyt-1-,L3T4-,Lyt-2-,AsGM1+,FcR gamma+ phenotype without exception, and most of them exhibited typical NK-patterned cytotoxicity. Analysis of reverse transcriptase activity of the culture supernatants as well as Southern hybridization of the DNA from the lines using an Mo-MLV-specific cDNA probe indicated no evidence of retroviral replication or proviral integration, suggesting that the generation of cell lines reflected a reactive process and viral infection was not directly responsible. It was subsequently revealed that Thy-1+,Lyt-1+,Lyt-2- spleen cells from mice infected with Mo-MLV in vivo spontaneously produced surprising amounts of IL-3 in vitro, leading to the possibility that IL-3 was responsible for the generation of lines. The possibility was directly supported by the observation that continuous lines with identical characteristics could be generated completely in vitro by sequential stimulation with rIL-3 and rIL-2 from normal spleen cells without any involvement of Mo-MLV. The C beta gene of TCR was shown to be rearranged in all the lines examined, indicating the LGL lines were all genetically committed to T cell lineage. Unlike the situation in normal splenic populations expanded by rIL-2, where the expression of IL-2-R was progressively lost, constitutive expression of high-affinity-IL-2-R was observed in all the lines and thus, this was considered to explain the unlimited proliferation of them in response to rIL-2 alone. These results suggested the probable role of IL-3 in the regulation of growth and differentiation of a set of LGL committed to T cell lineage. The possible implications of the phenomenon in the regulation of hematopoiesis as well as in the control of Mo-MLV-induced leukemogenesis were discussed.