Promoter control of translation in Xenopus oocytes.

The HIV-1 promoter directs the high level production of transcripts in Xenopus oocytes. However, despite being exported to the cytoplasm, the transcripts are not translated [M. Braddock, A. M. Thorburn, A. Chambers, G. D. Elliott, G. J. Anderson, A. J. Kingsman and S. M. Kingsman (1990) Cell, 62, 1123-1133]. We have shown previously that this is a function of promoter sequences and is independent of the TAR RNA element that is normally located at the 5' end of all HIV mRNAs. We now show that a three nucleotide substitution at position -340, upstream of the RNA start site, reverses the translation inhibition. This site coincides with a sequence that can bind the haematopoietic transcription factor GATA. The inhibition of translation can also be reversed by treatment with inhibitors of casein kinase II or by injection into the nucleus of antibodies specific for the FRGY2 family of RNP proteins. We suggest that the -340 site influences the quality of the transcription complex such that transcripts are diverted to a nucleus-dependent translation inhibition pathway.

Intron-less RNA injected into the nucleus of Xenopus oocytes accesses a regulated translation control pathway.

The translation of a capped, polyadenylated RNA after injection into the nucleus of Xenopus oocytes occurs only if the RNA contains an intron. A single point mutation in the splice donor site prevents translation. Intron-less RNA is exported efficiently to the cytoplasm and is held, undegraded, in a translationally inert state for several days. Translation can be activated by treating the oocytes with progesterone or by injecting antibodies that bind the FRGY2 class of messenger RNA binding proteins, p56 and p60, but these antibodies are only effective if delivered to the nucleus. Inhibitors of casein kinase II also activate translation whereas phosphatase inhibitors block progesterone-mediated activation of translation. These data suggest the presence of an RNA handling pathway in the nucleus of Xenopus oocytes which is regulated by casein kinase type II phosphorylation and which directs transcripts to be sequestered by p56/p60 or by closely related proteins. This pathway can be bypassed if the RNA contains an intron and it can be reversed by progesterone treatment. These data may have implications for understanding translational control during early development.

Rapid transcriptional assay for the expression of two distinct reporter genes by microinjection.

We have developed a technique in which gene expression from multiple reporter plasmids introduced by needle microinjection can be monitored simultaneously in individual cells by double-label indirect immunofluorescence. With constitutively active viral promoters, expression from lacZ or chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) reporter genes can be detected within as little as 30 min after injection. Expression from such strong promoters reaches a maximum level after about 2 hr. In place of the constitutive promoter, promoters containing different enhancer elements respond as expected to different stimuli, allowing for the comparison of two defined transcriptional control elements in living cells. Reporter expression can be analyzed temporally and can be compared to expression of endogenous genes. This technique is complementary to transfection and allows for the targeted analysis of expression in specific cells, for example, in a mixed cell population, and for the analysis of expression in cells that are available only in small numbers.

MyoD induced cell cycle arrest is associated with increased nuclear affinity of the Rb protein.

In studying the mechanism through which the myogenic determination protein MyoD prevents entry into the S phase of the cell cycle, we have found a relationship between MyoD and the retinoblastoma (Rb) tumor suppressor protein. By direct needle microinjection of purified recombinant MyoD protein into quiescent fibroblasts, which were then induced to proliferate by serum, we found that MyoD arrested progression of the cell cycle, in agreement with studies utilizing expression constructs for MyoD. By studying temporal changes in cells injected with MyoD protein, it was found that MyoD did not prevent serum induced expression of the protooncogene c-Fos, an event that occurs in the G0 to G1 transition of the cycle. Injection of the MyoD protein as late as 8 h after the addition of serum still caused an inhibition in DNA synthesis, suggesting that MyoD inhibits the G1 to S transition as opposed to the G0 to G1 transition. MyoD injection did not prevent the expression of cyclin A. However MyoD injection did result in a block in the increase in Rb extractibility normally seen in late G1 phase cells. As this phenomenon is associated with the hyperphosphorylation of Rb at this point in the cell cycle and is correlated with progression into S phase, this provides further evidence that MyoD blocks the cycle late in G1.

Regulation of cell cycle progression and nuclear affinity of the retinoblastoma protein by protein phosphatases.

Decreased affinity of the retinoblastoma protein (RB) for the nuclear compartment has been correlated with cell cycle-dependent phosphorylation of the RB protein during the G1/S phase of the cell cycle. We examined the effects of microinjected protein-serine/threonine phosphatases types 1 (PP1) and 2A (PP2A) on nuclear association of RB monitored as the resistance of RB to extraction at the G1/S transition. Microinjection of PP1 into either the nucleus or the cytoplasm of cells synchronized in G1 increased the amount of RB that was resistant to extraction from the nucleus. Microinjection of PP2A, however, required direct injection into the nucleus to generate this effect. In addition, we found that nuclear injection of only the PP2A catalytic subunit (PP2AC) and not the complex containing the A and C subunits inhibited RB extraction. Microinjection of either PP1 or PP2A and the resultant increased affinity of RB for the nucleus corresponded with the inhibition of cell cycle progression into S phase. Injection of either phosphatase into cells that had entered S phase did not block DNA synthesis, suggesting that the effect of the injected phosphatases on cell cycle arrest was specific. In vitro biochemical studies with purified PP1 and PP2A showed that intact RB protein phosphorylated by cdc2 kinase served as a substrate for both protein phosphatases. Our results suggest that protein phosphatases may be important regulators of RB function and support the idea that cell cycle progression is regulated by the phosphorylation state of the RB protein.

Blocking of Tat-dependent HIV-1 RNA modification by an inhibitor of RNA polymerase II processivity.

Human immunodeficiency virus gene expression is regulated transcriptionally and post-transcriptionally by the virally encoded tat protein (Tat). Tat functions through an RNA target sequence located in the untranslated region at the 5' end of viral transcripts. In Xenopus oocytes, translation of RNA containing the target sequence is specifically activated by Tat. This activation only occurs if the RNA is injected into the nucleus, and might be due to Tat-dependent, nucleus-specific chemical modification of the RNA which somehow facilitates translation. Here we demonstrate that Tat activation of its target RNA in the nucleus involves a Tat-dependent covalent modification. The modified RNA is competent for translation after reinjection into either the nucleus or the cytoplasm in the absence of Tat. Furthermore, we find that the nucleoside analogue 5,6-dichloro-1-beta-D-ribofuranosylbenzimidazole, which inhibits processivity of RNA polymerase II (ref. 9), blocks this Tat-dependent modification.

A nuclear translational block imposed by the HIV-1 U3 region is relieved by the Tat-TAR interaction.

Replication of HIV-1 depends on the viral Tat protein, which functions via a target sequence, TAR, present in the proviral long terminal repeat (LTR) and at the 5' end of viral mRNAs. We have shown that Tat potentiates the expression of TAR-containing RNAs, but only when Tat and the TAR-containing RNA are present in the nucleus. We now show that a small change in the TAR loop abolishes nuclear potentiation by Tat. Furthermore, the HIV-1 U3 region induces expression incompetence in mRNA synthesized by this promoter. RNAs of identical structure are, however, translated efficiently when produced from the CMV-IE promoter. The Tat-TAR system appears, therefore, to rescue the expression potential of HIV-1 LTR-directed RNA.