Sequence requirements for premature transcription arrest within the first intron of the mouse c-fos gene.

A strong block to the elongation of nascent RNA transcripts by RNA polymerase II occurs in the 5' part of the mammalian c-fos proto-oncogene. In addition to the control of initiation, this mechanism contributes to transcriptional regulation of the gene. In vitro transcription experiments using nuclear extracts and purified transcription templates allowed us to map a unique arrest site within the mouse first intron 385 nucleotides downstream from the promoter. This position is in keeping with that estimated from nuclear run-on assays performed with short DNA probes and thus suggests that it corresponds to the actual block in vivo. Moreover, we have shown that neither the c-fos promoter nor upstream sequences are absolute requirements for an efficient transcription arrest both in vivo and in vitro. Finally, we have characterized a 103-nucleotide-long intron 1 motif comprising the arrest site and sufficient for obtaining the block in a cell-free transcription assay.

Proteolysis by calpains: a possible contribution to degradation of p53.

p53 is a short-lived transcription factor that is frequently mutated in tumor cells. Work by several laboratories has already shown that the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway can largely account for p53 destruction, at least under specific experimental conditions. We report here that, in vitro, wild-type p53 is a sensitive substrate for milli- and microcalpain, which are abundant and ubiquitous cytoplasmic proteases. Degradation was dependent on p53 protein conformation. Mutants of p53 with altered tertiary structure displayed a wide range of susceptibility to calpains, some of them being largely resistant to degradation and others being more sensitive. This result suggests that the different mutants tested here adopt slightly different conformations to which calpains are sensitive but that cannot be discriminated by using monoclonal antibodies such as PAb1620 and PAb240. Inhibition of calpains by using the physiological inhibitor calpastatin leads to an elevation of p53 steady-state levels in cells expressing wild-type p53. Conversely, activation of calpains by calcium ionophore led to a reduction of p53 in mammalian cells, and the effect was blocked by cell-permeant calpain inhibitors. Cotransfection of p53-null cell lines with p53 and calpastatin expression vectors resulted in an increase in p53-dependent transcription activity. Taken together, these data support the idea that calpains may also contribute to the regulation of wild-type p53 protein levels in vivo.

In situ and in vitro evidence for intragenic binding of nuclear factors at the murine c-myc locus.

A block to transcriptional elongation within the c-myc proto-oncogene has been previously observed in a large number of different mouse and human cell types and its release is a potentially important element in the pathogenesis of some malignancies. We show here that the chromatin around the mouse c-myc exon 1-intron 1 boundary is differentially accessible to restriction enzymes in purified nuclei. Using a combination of in situ exonuclease III protection assay with in vitro footprints and gel band shifts, we have shown the existence of a stable nucleoprotein complex in this same region in mouse erythroleukemia cell nuclei. This situation is not peculiar to these cells and we have shown that the accessibility of the two BglII sites present at the beginning of intron 1 seems to depend not only upon the transcriptional state, but also upon the structural integrity of the gene.

Differential directing of c-Fos and c-Jun proteins to the proteasome in serum-stimulated mouse embryo fibroblasts.

c-Fos and c-Jun proteins are highly unstable transcription factors that heterodimerize within the AP-1 transcription complex. Their accumulation is transiently induced at the beginning of the G0-to-S phase transition in quiescent cells stimulated for growth. To address the mechanisms responsible for rapid clearance of c-Fos and c-Jun proteins under these experimental conditions, we have used the ts20 mouse embryo fibroblasts which express a thermosensitive mutant of the E1 enzyme of the ubiquitin pathway. The use of cell-permeant protease inhibitors indicates that both proteins are degraded by the proteasome and excludes any major contribution for calpains and lysosomes during the G0-to-S phase transition. Synchronisation of ts20 cells at the non permissive temperature blocks the degradation of c-Jun, indicating that this process is E1-dependent. In contrast, c-Fos is broken down according to an apparently E1-independent pathway in ts20 cells, although a role for ubiquitinylation in this process cannot be formally ruled out. Interestingly, c-Jun is highly unstable in c-Fos-null mouse embryo fibroblasts stimulated for growth. Taken together, these observations show that in vivo during a G0-to-S phase transition (i) the precise mechanisms triggering c-Fos and c-Jun directing to the proteasome are not identical, (ii) the presence of c-Fos is not an absolute prerequisite for the degradation of c-Jun and (iii) the degradation of c-Jun is not required for that of c-Fos.

AUUUA motifs are dispensable for rapid degradation of the mouse c-myc RNA.

Sequence determinants responsible for c-myc RNA rapid turn-over are localized within the 3' non-coding region which is mainly characterized by the presence of two polyadenylation signals and a high content in A and U. Although the AUUUA/UUAUUUA motif is commonly thought to specify a whole class of unstable RNAs coding for various onco-proteins and cytokines, site-directed mutagenesis showed that both of the two such sequences found in the mouse c-myc RNA are dispensable for rapid RNA degradation. Although less efficient than the whole 3' non-coding region, the last 50 nucleotides of c-myc RNA, mainly made up of U and A and devoid of AUUUA/UUAUUUA motif, are sufficient to confer instability to the coding sequence.

Human cyclin C protein is stabilized by its associated kinase cdk8, independently of its catalytic activity.

Cyclin C belongs to the cyclin family of proteins that control cell cycle transitions through activation of specific catalytic subunits, the cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs). However, there is as yet no evidence for any role of cyclin C and its partner, cdk8, in cell cycle regulation. Rather, the cyclin C-cdk8 complex was found associated with the RNA polymerase II transcription machinery. The periodic degradation of bona fide cyclins is crucial for cell-cycle progression and depends on the catalytic activity of the associated CDK. Here we show that endogenous cyclin C protein is quite stable with a half-life of 4 h. In contrast, exogenously expressed cyclin C is very unstable (half-life 15 min) and degraded by the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. Co-expression with its associated cdk, however, strongly stabilizes cyclin C and results in a protein half-life near that of endogenous cyclin C. In stark contrast to data reported for other members of the cyclin family, both catalytically active and inactive cdk8 induce cyclin C stabilization. Moreover, this stabilization is accompanied in both cases by phosphorylation of the cyclin, which is not detectable when unstable. Our results indicate that cyclin C has apparently diverged from other cyclins in the regulation of its stability by its CDK partner.

Differential sensitivity of FOS and JUN family members to calpains.

Degradation of c-fos protein (c-FOS) in the cytoplasm is very rapid in vivo and constitutes a crucial regulation of the nuclear steady-state level through the control of the amount of full-length molecules available for nuclear transport. Using cytoplasmic extracts from various origins, we report herein that c-FOS degradation can be initiated in a calcium-dependent manner which involves cysteine proteases called milli- and micro-calpain. Interestingly, FOS-B, a member of the fos multigene family, as well as all members of the jun family (JUN-B, c-JUN and JUN-D) are also sensitive to calpains albeit to different extents. FRA-2, which is a c-FOS-related protein, is resistant to micro- but not to milli-calpain whereas FRA-1, another member of the fos family, is resistant to both proteases. Given the fact that a work by others (Hiraï et al., 1991b) suggests that calpains can be involved in c-FOS and c-JUN degradation in vivo, our observations raises the possibility of a novel contribution to the regulation of AP-1 transcription complex activity through a differential control of the steady-state level of some of its components that involves calpains.

Retrovirus-mediated gene transfer of a human c-fos cDNA into mouse bone marrow stromal cells.

A cDNA encoding a complete human c-fos protein was isolated and inserted into two different murine MoMuLV-derived recombinant retroviruses allowing expression of c-fos protein in different cell types. One c-fos-expressing retrovirus, chosen for its ability to express high levels of proteins in fibroblast-like cells, was shown to potentiate long-term cultures of mouse bone marrow stromal cells in vitro and therefore constitutes a potential tool for immortalizing such cells. Moreover, when tested in an in vitro differentiation assay, stromal cells constitutively expressing c-fos favor the granulocyte differentiation of hematopoietic precursors. Interestingly, retroviruses expressing v-src and v-abl oncogenes, included as controls in our experiments, do not produce any detectable effects, whereas those expressing polyoma virus middle T antigen facilitate long-term growth in vitro of stromal cells that favor the macrophage differentiation pathway of bone marrow stem cells. Our observation supports the idea that constitutive expression of some oncogenes, including c-fos and polyoma virus middle T antigen, may influence cytokine production by bone marrow stromal cells.

Cellular and viral Fos proteins are degraded by different proteolytic systems.

c-Fos proto-oncoprotein is a short-lived transcription factor degraded by the proteasome in vivo. Its mutated forms expressed by the mouse osteosarcomatogenic retroviruses, FBJ-MSV and FBR-MSV, are stabilized two- and threefold, respectively. To elucidate the mechanisms underlying v-Fos(FBJ) and v-Fos(FBR) protein stabilization, we conducted a genetic analysis in which the half-lives and the sensitivities to various cell-permeable protease inhibitors of a variety of cellular and viral protein mutants were measured. Our data showed that the decreased degradation of v-Fos(FBJ) and v-Fos(FBR) is not simply explained by the deletion of a c-Fos destabilizing C-terminal domain. Rather, it involves a complex balance between opposing destabilizing and stabilizing mutations which are distinct and which include virally-introduced peptide motifs in both cases. The mutations in viral Fos proteins conferred both total insensitivity to proteasomal degradation and sensitivity to another proteolytic system not naturally operating on c-Fos, explaining the limited stabilization of the two proteins. This observation is consistent with the idea that FBR-MSV and FBJ-MSV expression machineries have evolved to ensure controlled protein levels. Importantly, our data illustrate that the degradation of unstable proteins does not necessarily involve the proteasome and provide support to the notion that highly related proteins can be broken down by different proteolytic systems in living cells.

Identification of a C-terminal tripeptide motif involved in the control of rapid proteasomal degradation of c-Fos proto-oncoprotein during the G(0)-to-S phase transition.

c-Fos proto-oncoprotein is rapidly and transiently expressed in cells undergoing the G(0)-to-S phase transition in response to stimulation for growth by serum. Under these conditions, the rapid decay of the protein occurring after induction is accounted for by efficient recognition and degradation by the proteasome. PEST motifs are sequences rich in Pro, Glu, Asp, Ser and Thr which have been proposed to constitute protein instability determinants. c-Fos contains three such motifs, one of which comprises the C-terminal 20 amino acids and has already been proposed to be the major determinant of c-Fos instability. Using site-directed mutagenesis and an expression system reproducing c-fos gene transient expression in transfected cells, we have analysed the turnover of c-Fos mutants deleted of the various PEST sequences in synchronized mouse embryo fibroblasts. Our data showed no role for the two internal PEST motifs in c-Fos instability. However, deletion of the C-terminal PEST region led to only a twofold stabilization of the protein. Taken together, these data indicate that c-Fos instability during the G0-to-S phase transition is governed by a major non-PEST destabilizer and a C-terminal degradation-accelerating element. Further dissection of c-Fos C-terminal region showed that the degradation-accelerating effect is not contributed by the whole PEST sequence but by a short PTL tripeptide which cannot be considered as a PEST motif and which can act in the absence of any PEST environment. Interestingly, the PTL motif is conserved in other members of the fos multigene family. Nevertheless, its contribution to protein instability is restricted to c-Fos suggesting that the mechanisms whereby the various Fos proteins are broken down are, at least partially, different. MAP kinases-mediated phosphorylation of two serines close to PTL, which are both phosphorylated all over the G(0)-to-S phase transition, have been proposed by others to stabilize c-Fos protein significantly. We, however, showed that the PTL motif does not exert its effect by counteracting a stabilizing effect of these phosphorylations under our experimental conditions.

Altered myc gene transcription and intron-induced stabilization of myc RNAs in two mouse plasmacytomas.

Accumulation of unusually high amounts of larger-than-normal c-myc mRNAs occurs in two mouse plasmacytomas, TEPC 1165 and TEPC 2027. Southern blot and DNA sequence analyses showed that both tumors have undergone translocations of immunoglobulin heavy chain loci to positions 5' of the c-myc gene promotors resulting in removal of DNA sequences encoding a negative transcriptional regulatory element. In contrast to other mouse plasmacytomas, TEPC 1165 and TEPC 2027 rearranged myc genes show increased transcription, partially explaining their abundance of myc RNA. Similar to other mouse plasmacytomas, the abundance of myc RNA in TEPC 1165 and TEPC 2027 is also influenced by increased stability of structurally atypical myc RNAs. Two myc mRNAs are found in TEPC 2027, a 2.4 kb species including all 3 myc exons and a 4.0 kb species with the 3 exons plus the first intron. The two major myc mRNAs in TEPC 1165, 3.0 and 3.9 kb species, also include all three myc exons plus portions of the first intron. S1 nuclease protection analyses show that the 5' initiation and 3' untranslated (UT) regions of the unusual TEPC 1165 RNAs are normal showing that the size differences arise solely from inclusion of first intron sequences in the large myc RNAs. DNA sequence analysis showed that the presence of first intron sequences in the large myc RNAs is due to mutations affecting the splice donor region at the 3' end of exon 1 in both tumors. SDS-PAGE analysis of immunoprecipitated TEPC 1165 and TEPC 2027 myc proteins showed them to be of normal electrophoretic mobility but no more abundant than in a pre-B cell line 18-81 that contains at least 10 fold less myc RNA. The 4.0 kb myc mRNA of TEPC 2027 is atypically stable while the 2.4 kb myc mRNA undergoes normal rapid turnover within the same cell, demonstrating that the presence of first intron sequences in the large myc RNA stabilizes it despite the presence of 3' UT and putative exon 1 destabilizing sequences. These results show that myc intron 1 sequences can counteract the effect of 3' UT region destabilizing sequences in myc RNA and suggest that the increased myc RNA stability noted in TEPC 1165 and TEPC 2027 is largely due to the presence of the intron 1 sequences.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Insertion sequences and tandem repetitions as sources of variation in a dispersed repeat family.

Sequencing of ten clones from the major dispersed repeat family of mouse (MIF-1) has identified two novel types of sequence variation. Two clones contain small insertion sequences that are flanked by five base-pair duplications of the target site. A third clone, MIFC70, contains a 20 base-pair insertion composed of four direct repeats of a five base-pair sequence. This insertion may have arisen by successive out-of-register pairing and cross-over events at an ancestral target sequence. MIFC70 is also distinguished by its divergence from the standard MIF-1 sequence; whereas for standard clones of the MIF-1 family inter-copy divergence does not exceed 10%, the divergence between MIFC70 and standard clones is of the order of 26%. MIFC70 may represent an aberrant copy which is now isolated from the bulk of the repeat family and is free to diverge.

Comparative study of the L1 family in the genus Mus. Possible role of retroposition and conversion events in its concerted evolution.

The long interspersed repetitive family L1 was analysed in different species belonging to the genus Mus. It is shown to be highly conserved even in M.n. setulosus, which diverged from the other species around ten million years ago. The study of the linkage between diagnostic restriction sites in the various species and the sequence variations of different regions of the L1Md repeat shows that the L1 family undergoes concerted changes involving subsets of repeats. The rate at which this homogenization process occurs does not appear to be the same for all the subfamilies detected. The L1Md repeat in the twelfth intron of the serum albumin gene of Balb/c mice is shown to be a recent insertion. The role retroposon- and gene conversion-like events may play in the concerted evolution of the L1 family is discussed.

Isolation and characterization of c-fos-expressing murine bone marrow stromal cell lines supporting myeloid differentiation.

We have previously reported that constitutive expression of c-fos oncogene allows long-term proliferation of primary mouse bone marrow stromal cells favoring the granulocytic differentiation of myeloid precursors in an in vitro assay. Retrovirus-mediated gene transfer of the human c-fos gene was used here for immortalizing nine mouse bone marrow cell lines which were studied in detail. However, due to low expression of the ectopic c-fos gene, none of them showed characteristics of transformation as assayed by dependence upon serum for growth, the inability to form colonies in agar and contact inhibition. All of them displayed a fibroblastoid phenotype, as deduced from morphological observation and analysis of several differentiation markers. They mostly supported the granulocytic differentiation of bone marrow myeloid precursors in a GM-assay, as did c-fos-expressing primary stromal cells. Their potential for supporting myeloid progenitor proliferation was however significantly lower than that of the whole adherent layer of the Dexter-type long-term bone marrow culture they derived from (STNT cells). They showed significant variations with respect to their cytokine gene expression analyzed at the RNA level in keeping with the notion of stromal cell heterogeneity in the bone marrow. Interestingly, none of them secreted GM-CSF, SCF or IL-3, which are cytokines reputed for their ability to stimulate hematopoietic progenitors, and strikingly, only two of them were able to produce detectable levels of G-CSF in culture supernatants despite the propensity of all of them to favor granulocyte differentiation. Finally, in coculture assay, bone marrow cells were able to diminish the expression of several cytokine genes albeit at a much lower degree than in the original STNT cells.

Genetically engineered antibodies in gene transfer and gene therapy.

Our ability to produce and engineer human monoclonal antibodies provides a basis for the development of novel therapeutical strategies against a variety of diseases. These strategies not only include improved passive immunotherapy but also more sophisticated antibody-based gene therapies involving gene transfer approaches. Four of the major applications of antibody gene engineering in the field of gene therapy are reviewed here. These are (1) the redefinition of viral vector tropism of infection for better transduction of cells of therapeutical interest, (2) the grafting of new cell recognition activities to effector cells of the immune system to kill cancer and pathogen-infected cells, (3) the inhibition of cellular and viral functions through intracellular expression of antibody-derived molecules, and (4) the systemic delivery of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies by non-B cells in living organisms.

Immunotherapy of a viral disease by in vivo production of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies.

Continuous and sustained in vivo production of monoclonal antibodies by engineered cells might render long-term antibody-based treatments cost-effective, avoid side effects associated with infusion of massive doses of antibody, and circumvent possible antiidiotypic responses against the therapeutic agent. The FrCasE retrovirus induces a lethal neurodegeneration on infection of newborn mice. We report here that implantation of cellulose sulfate capsules containing cells secreting an ectopic monoclonal antibody neutralizing FrCasE can prevent animals from developing the disease. All treated mice showed reduced or undetectable viremia in addition to a lack of the histopathological lesions characteristic of FrCasE infection. This work paves the way for a novel gene/cell antibody-based immunotherapy of a variety of severe viral and nonviral diseases.

Antiviral activity of an intracellularly expressed single-chain antibody fragment directed against the murine leukemia virus capsid protein.

We have addressed the possibility that intracellularly expressed miniantibodies directed against the viral capsid protein can be used as antiretroviral agents in gene transfer experiments. R187 is a rat monoclonal antibody that has been reported to recognize the MuLV p30gag capsid polypeptide. We report here that it also binds to the Pr65gag precursor polyprotein. R187 has been cloned and expressed in the form of a single-chain variable fragment (scFv) that shows the same binding specificity as the parental antibody. When expressed intracellularly, the R187 scFv favors the production of viral particles showing reduced infectivity. It, however, exerts no detectable protective effect against infection. This was observed both when using replication-incompetent MuLV-derived vector and replication-competent wild-type MuLV. Although the intimate mechanism of the inhibition is not clear, this work raises the possibility that gene engineering of anti-capsid protein scFvs may offer an additional lead for gene therapy of severe retrovirus-linked diseases.

In vitro and in vivo secretion of cloned antibodies by genetically modified myogenic cells.

In vivo production of recombinant antibodies by engineered cells may have applications for gene therapy of certain cancers and of certain severe viral diseases. It would also permit the development of new animal models of autoimmune diseases and new approaches for in vivo ablation of specific cell types for fundamental purposes. Using gene transfer of an anti-human thyroglobulin monoclonal antibody, we show here that several cell types permitting autologous grafting of genetically engineered cells are efficiently able to secrete antibodies in vitro. Those cells include skin fibroblasts, hepatocytes, and myogenic cells. We also show that the secreted antibodies display an affinity for the antigen close to that of the parental antibody, with, however, slight differences varying according to the cell type. This indicates that the foldings of antigen combining sites of antibodies produced in B cell- and non-B cell contexts are very similar. Finally, we report that, when implanted in the forelimb of a mouse, genetically modified myogenic cells are able to secrete antibodies for at least 4 months. Taken together, our observations point to the notion that genetic modification of patient cells may be used for long-term antibody-based gene therapies.

Sustained systemic delivery of monoclonal antibodies by genetically modified skin fibroblasts.

In vivo production and systemic delivery of therapeutic antibodies by engineered cells might advantageously replace injection of purified antibodies for treating a variety of life-threatening diseases, including cancer, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, and autoimmune diseases. We report here that skin fibroblasts retrovirally transduced to express immunoglobulin genes can be used for sustained long-term systemic delivery of cloned antibodies in immunocompetent mice. Importantly, no anti- idiotypic response against the ectopically expressed model antibody used in this study was observed. This supports the notion that skin fibroblasts can potentially be used in antibody-based gene/cell therapy protocols without inducing any adverse immune response in treated individuals.

An easy method for the selection of restriction- and modification-deficient mutants of Escherichia coli K-12.

An easy and rapid method for selecting restriction- and modification-defective mutants of Escherichia coli K-12 is described. This method employs selection of tetracycline resistant lysogens after infection with lambda::Tn10 phage and results in a high yield of spontaneous rk-mk- and rk-mk+ mutants.