Species variation in transcription factor IIIA.

Species variation in transcription factor IIIA (TFIIIA) was examined by comparing the abilities of TFIIIAs isolated from different Xenopus and Rana species to 1) bind rabbit anti-Xenopus laevis TFIIIA IgG, 2) specifically interact with the Xenopus borealis somatic 5S RNA gene, and 3) promote transcription of the Xenopus borealis 5S RNA gene in vitro. In immunoblot assays, Rana catesbeiana or Rana pipiens TFIIIA did not react readily with rabbit anti-Xenopus laevis TFIIIA IgG (assayed with anti-rabbit F(ab')2 fragment conjugated with alkaline phosphatase) whereas Xenopus borealis TFIIIA exhibited similar reactivity with this IgG as Xenopus laevis TFIIIA. When compared to Xenopus TFIIIAs, Rana TFIIIAs exhibited similar interactions with the 3' portion of the intragenic control region of the Xenopus 5S RNA gene (to residue +78 on the coding strand and up to and including +74 on the non-coding strand, nucleotides protected from DNase I digestion by the N-terminal half of Xenopus TFIIIA) and incomplete interactions with the remaining 5' portion of the control region (nucleotides protected from DNase I digestion by the C-terminal half of Xenopus TFIIIA). In a Xenopus laevis unfertilized egg extract, Rana catesbeiana and Rana pipiens TFIIIAs promoted transcription of the Xenopus borealis somatic 5S RNA gene less efficiently than Xenopus laevis and Xenopus borealis TFIIIAs.

Xenopus transcription factor IIIA-dependent DNA renaturation.

Kinetic and titration analyses are used to elucidate the mechanism by which Xenopus transcription factor IIIA (TFIIIA), a protein required for 5 S RNA synthesis by RNA polymerase III, promotes DNA renaturation. TFIIIA promotes 50% renaturation of complementary strands (303 bases) in 45 s. Analyses of the renaturation kinetics indicate the rate-limiting step in this TFIIIA-dependent reaction is first order. TFIIIA-dependent DNA renaturation is a stoichiometric rather than a catalytic process. The renaturation rates for specific and nonspecific DNA are very similar, indicating lack of sequence specificity in this TFIIIA-dependent process. In the nanomolar concentration range of protein and DNA, renaturation occurs at a ratio of about one TFIIIA molecule/single strand (303 bases). Elevated reaction temperatures strongly stimulate TFIIIA-dependent DNA renaturation; at 45 degrees C, renaturation of the 303-base pair fragment nears completion in about 5 s. The ability of TFIIIA to rapidly promote DNA renaturation is unique when compared with Escherichia coli recA protein, single-stranded DNA binding protein, or bacteriophage T4 gene 32 protein. This mechanism by which TFIIIA promotes DNA renaturation is compatible with features of 5 S RNA gene transcription.

Deletion of the N-terminal region of Xenopus transcription factor IIIA inhibits specific binding to the 5 S RNA gene.

Xenopus transcription factor IIIA (TFIIIA) is expressed in Escherichia coli by utilizing one plasmid with a T7 RNA polymerase gene and another plasmid with TFIIIA cDNA cloned downstream of a T7 promoter. Wild-type TFIIIA and a TFIIIA deletion mutant, isolated from E. coli cell extracts, are identified by antiserum against native TFIIIA purified from Xenopus immature oocytes. DNase I protection experiments indicate that wild-type TFIIIA, synthesized from a full-length TFIIIA cDNA, binds specifically to the coding and noncoding strands of the 5 S RNA gene. The TFIIIA deletion mutant, expressed from TFIIIA cDNA lacking the coding sequence for the N-terminal 29 amino acids, fails to bind specifically to the 5 S RNA gene as judged by its inability to protect to any degree the coding or noncoding strands of the gene from DNase I digestion. Both wild-type TFIIIA and the N-terminal deletion mutant promote DNA renaturation.

Novobiocin inhibits Xenopus transcription factor IIIA-DNA interactions.

Novobiocin and coumermycin, inhibitors of the B subunit of Escherichia coli DNA gyrase, inhibit the binding of Xenopus transcription factor IIIA (TFIIIA) to the 5 S RNA gene. Nalidixic acid and oxolinic acid, inhibitors of the A subunit of DNA gyrase, have no effect on the TFIIIA-5 S RNA gene interaction. Novobiocin and coumermycin inhibit TFIIIA-dependent DNA renaturation. Novobiocin dissociates TFIIIA.5 S RNA gene complexes and TFIIIA.5 S RNA complexes (7 S particles). Novobiocin induces TFIIIA aggregation, a phenomenon likely to be responsible for the inhibition of TFIIIA-DNA interactions. Novobiocin inhibition of TFIIIA can be reversed by dilution.