Jun dimerization protein 2 is a critical component of the Nrf2/MafK complex regulating the response to ROS homeostasis.

Oxidative stress and reactive oxygen species (ROS) are associated with diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular complications, inflammation and neurodegeneration. Cellular defense systems must work constantly to control ROS levels and to prevent their accumulation. We report here that the Jun dimerization protein 2 (JDP2) has a critical role as a cofactor for transcription factors nuclear factor-erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and small Maf protein family K (MafK) in the regulation of the antioxidant-responsive element (ARE) and production of ROS. Chromatin immunoprecipitation-quantitative PCR (qPCR), electrophoresis mobility shift and ARE-driven reporter assays were carried out to examine the role of JDP2 in ROS production. JDP2 bound directly to the ARE core sequence, associated with Nrf2 and MafK (Nrf2-MafK) via basic leucine zipper domains, and increased DNA-binding activity of the Nrf2-MafK complex to the ARE and the transcription of ARE-dependent genes. In mouse embryonic fibroblasts from Jdp2-knockout (Jdp2 KO) mice, the coordinate transcriptional activation of several ARE-containing genes and the ability of Nrf2 to activate expression of target genes were impaired. Moreover, intracellular accumulation of ROS and increased thickness of the epidermis were detected in Jdp2 KO mice in response to oxidative stress-inducing reagents. These data suggest that JDP2 is required to protect against intracellular oxidation, ROS activation and DNA oxidation. qPCR demonstrated that several Nrf2 target genes such as heme oxygenase-1, glutamate-cysteine ligase catalytic and modifier subunits, the notch receptor ligand jagged 1 and NAD(P)H dehydrogenase quinone 1 are also dependent on JDP2 for full expression. Taken together, these results suggest that JDP2 is an integral component of the Nrf2-MafK complex and that it modulates antioxidant and detoxification programs by acting via the ARE.

Androgen receptor-mediated apoptosis in bovine testicular induced pluripotent stem cells in response to phthalate esters.

The androgen receptor (AR) has a critical role in promoting androgen-dependent and -independent apoptosis in testicular cells. However, the molecular mechanisms that underlie the ligand-independent apoptosis, including the activity of AR in testicular stem cells, are not completely understood. In the present study, we generated induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from bovine testicular cells by electroporation of octamer-binding transcription factor 4 (OCT4). The cells were supplemented with leukemia inhibitory factor and bone morphogenetic protein 4, which maintained and stabilized the expression of stemness genes and pluripotency. The iPSCs were used to assess the apoptosis activity following exposure to phthalate esters, including di (2-ethyhexyl) phthalates, di (n-butyl) phthalate, and butyl benzyl phthalate. Phthalate esters significantly reduced the expression of AR in iPSCs and induced a higher ratio of BAX/BCL-2, thereby favoring apoptosis. Phthalate esters also increased the expression of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1 (p21(Cip1)) in a p53-dependent manner and enhanced the transcriptional activity of p53. The forced expression of AR and knockdown of p21(Cip1) led to the rescue of the phthalate-mediated apoptosis. Overall, this study suggests that testicular iPSCs are a useful system for screening the toxicity of environmental disruptors and examining their effect on the maintenance of stemness and pluripotency, as well as for identifying the iPSC signaling pathway(s) that are deregulated by these chemicals.

Functional analysis of the p300 acetyltransferase domain: the PHD finger of p300 but not of CBP is dispensable for enzymatic activity.

Acetylation of nucleosomal histones is a major regulatory step during activation of eukaryotic gene expression. Among the known acetyltransferase (AT) families, the structure-function relationship of the GNAT superfamily is the most well understood. In contrast, less information is available regarding mechanistic and regulatory aspects of p300/CBP AT function. In this paper, we investigate in closer detail the structure and sequence requirements for p300/CBP enzymatic activity. Unexpectedly, we find that the PHD finger of p300, but not of CBP, is dispensable for AT activity. In order to identify residues involved in substrate or acetyl-coenzyme A (acetyl-CoA) recognition, we have introduced 19 different amino acid substitutions in segments that are highly conserved between animal and plant p300/CBP proteins. By performing acetylation reactions with histones, a p53 peptide or the AT domain itself, we define several residues required for histone and p53 substrate recruitment but not for acetyl-CoA binding. Finally, we show that identical mutations in the p300 and CBP AT domain impair AT activity differently. This latter result combined with the finding of a differential requirement for the PHD finger provides evidence for structural differences between p300 and CBP that may in part underlie a previously reported functional specialization of the two proteins.

Plant orthologs of p300/CBP: conservation of a core domain in metazoan p300/CBP acetyltransferase-related proteins.

p300 and CBP participate as transcriptional coregulators in the execution of a wide spectrum of cellular gene expression programs controlling cell differentiation, growth and homeostasis. Both proteins act together with sequence-specific transcription factors to modify chromatin structure of target genes via their intrinsic acetyltransferase activity directed towards core histones and some transcription factors. So far, p300-related proteins have been described in animals ranging from Drosophila and Caenorhabditis elegans to humans. In this report, we describe p300/CBP-like polypeptides in the plant Arabidopsis thaliana. Interestingly, homology between animal and plant p300/CBP is largely restricted to a C-terminal segment, about 600 amino acids in length, which encompasses acetyltransferase and E1A-binding domains. We have examined whether this conservation in sequence is paralleled by a conservation in function. The same amino acid residues critical for acetyltransferase activity in human p300 are also critical for the function of one of the plant orthologs. Remarkably, plant proteins bind to the adenovirus E1A protein in a manner recapitulating the binding specificity of mammalian p300/CBP. The striking conservation of an extended segment of p300/CBP suggests that it may constitute a functional entity fulfilling functions that may be essential for all metazoan organisms.

p300/CBP-dependent and -independent transcriptional interference between NF-kappaB RelA and p53.

p53 and NF-kappaB RelA are activated by various genotoxic agents and mutually suppress each other's ability to activate transcription, most likely through competition for transcriptional coactivators such as CBP or p300. However, we found that the inhibition by RelA of p53 transcriptional activity is not completely restored by CBP/p300 overexpression and that a p53 mutant can not suppress RelA activity despite of its ability to bind CBP/p300. In the present study, we further present evidence that these two transcriptional factors directly interact both in vivo and in vitro. These results therefore indicate that the cross transcriptional interference between p53 and RelA is partly caused by the direct interaction between these two transcription factors which is mediated by their dimerization/tetramerization domains and results in inhibition of each other's transcriptional activity. Finally, cells derived from RelA knockout mice showed enhanced p53 transcriptional activity, suggesting that this cross transcriptional interference is physiologically important in cellular response to genotoxic stress.

Distinct roles of the co-activators p300 and CBP in retinoic-acid-induced F9-cell differentiation.

The related proteins p300 and CBP (cAMP-response-element-binding protein (CREB)-binding protein)) are transcriptional co-activators that act with other factors to regulate gene expression and play roles in many cell-differentiation and signal transduction pathways. Both proteins have intrinsic histone-acetyltransferase activity and may act directly on chromatin, of which histone is a component, to facilitate transcription. They are also involved in growth control pathways, as shown by their interaction with the tumour suppressor p53 and the viral oncogenes E1A and SV40 T antigen. Here we report functional differences of p300 and CBP in vivo. We examined their roles during retinoic-acid-induced differentiation, cell-cycle exit and programmed cell death (apoptosis) of embryonal carcinoma F9 cells, using hammerhead ribozymes capable of cleaving either p300 or CBP messenger RNAs. F9 cells expressing a p300-specific ribozyme became resistant to retinoic-acid-induced differentiation, whereas cells expressing a CBP-specific ribozyme were unaffected. Similarly, retinoic-acid-induced transcriptional upregulation of the cell-cycle inhibitor p21Cip1 required normal levels of p300, but not CBP, whereas the reverse was true for p27Kip1. In contrast, both ribozymes blocked retinoic-acid-induced apoptosis, indicating that both co-activators are required for this process. Thus, despite their similarities, p300 and CBP have distinct functions during retinoic-acid-induced differentiation of F9 cells.

Gene dosage-dependent embryonic development and proliferation defects in mice lacking the transcriptional integrator p300.

The transcriptional coactivator and integrator p300 and its closely related family member CBP mediate multiple, signal-dependent transcriptional events. We have generated mice lacking a functional p300 gene. Animals nullizygous for p300 died between days 9 and 11.5 of gestation, exhibiting defects in neurulation, cell proliferation, and heart development. Cells derived from p300-deficient embryos displayed specific transcriptional defects and proliferated poorly. Surprisingly, p300 heterozygotes also manifested considerable embryonic lethality. Moreover, double heterozygosity for p300 and cbp was invariably associated with embryonic death. Thus, mouse development is exquisitely sensitive to the overall gene dosage of p300 and cbp. Our results provide genetic evidence that a coactivator endowed with histone acetyltransferase activity is essential for mammalian cell proliferation and development.

CREB-binding protein cooperates with transcription factor GATA-1 and is required for erythroid differentiation.

The transcription factor GATA-1 coordinates multiple events during terminal erythroid cell maturation. GATA-1 participates in the transcription of virtually all erythroid-specific genes, blocks apoptosis of precursor cells, and controls the balance between proliferation and cell cycle arrest. Prior studies suggest that the function of GATA-1 is mediated in part through association with transcriptional cofactors. CREB-binding protein (CBP) and its close relative p300 serve as coactivators for a variety of transcription factors involved in growth control and differentiation. We report here that CBP markedly stimulates GATA-1's transcriptional activity in transient transfection experiments in nonhematopoietic cells. GATA-1 and CBP also coimmunoprecipitate from nuclear extracts of erythroid cells. Interaction mapping pinpoints contact sites to the zinc finger region of GATA-1 and to the E1A-binding region of CBP. Expression of a conditional form of adenovirus E1A in murine erythroleukemia cells blocks differentiation and expression of endogenous GATA-1 target genes, whereas mutant forms of E1A unable to bind CBP/p300 have no effect. Our findings add GATA-1, and very likely other members of the GATA family, to the growing list of molecules implicated in the complex regulatory network surrounding CBP/p300.

p300 and ATF-2 are components of the DRF complex, which regulates retinoic acid- and E1A-mediated transcription of the c-jun gene in F9 cells.

Transcriptional activation of the c-jun gene is a critical event in the differentiation of F9 cells. In our previous studies we characterized an element [differentiation response element (DRE)] in the c-jun promoter that is both necessary and sufficient to confer the capacity for differentiation-dependent up-regulation. This element binds the differentiation regulatory factor (DRF) complex, of which one component is the adenovirus E1A-associated protein p300. We have now identified activation transcription factor-2 (ATF-2) as a DNA-binding subunit of the DRF complex. p300 and ATF-2 interact with each other in vivo and in vitro. The bromodomain and the C/H2 domain of p300 mediate the binding to ATF-2, which in turn requires a proline-rich region between amino acids 112 and 350 for its interaction with p300. The phosphorylation of the serine residue at position 121 of ATF-2 appears to be induced by protein kinase C alpha (PKC alpha) after treatment of cells with retinoic acid (RA) or induction with E1A. In cotransfection assays, wild-type ATF-2 enhanced the transcription of an E2/tk-luciferase construct, in conjunction with p300-E2. However, a mutant form of ATF-2 with a mutation at position 121 (pCMVATF-2(Ser121-Ala)) did not. These results suggest that ATF-2 and p300 cooperate in the control of transcription by forming a protein complex that is responsive to differentiation-inducing signals, such as RA or E1A, and moreover, that the phosphorylation of ATF-2 by PKC alpha is probably a signaling event in the pathway that leads to the transactivation of the c-jun gene in F9 cells.

p300 family members associate with the carboxyl terminus of simian virus 40 large tumor antigen.

Several cellular polypeptides critical for growth regulation interact with DNA tumor virus oncoproteins. p400 is a cellular protein which binds to the adenovirus E1A oncoprotein(s). The biological function of p400 is not yet known, but it is structurally and immunologically closely related to p300 and CREB-binding protein, two known E1A-binding transcription adapters. Like p300, p400 is a phosphoprotein that binds to the simian virus 40 large tumor antigen (T). In anti-T coimmunoprecipitation experiments, staggered deletions spanning the amino-terminal 250 amino acids of T did not abrogate T binding to either p400 or p300. A T species composed of residues 251 to 708 bound both p400 and p300, while a T species defective in p53 binding was unable to bind either detectably. Anti-p53 immunoprecipitates prepared from cells containing wild-type T also contained p400 and p300. Hence, both p400 and p300 can bind (directly or indirectly) to a carboxyl-terminal fragment of T which contains its p53 binding domain. Since the p53 binding domain of T contributes to its immortalizing and transforming activities, T-p400 and/or T-p300 interactions may participate in these functions.

p300 and CBP as transcriptional regulators and targets of oncogenic events.

p300 and CBP are large nuclear proteins, encoded by two distinct genes, that appear to be involved in regulated transcription and cellular growth control. They are highly related in sequence and are expressed in most, if not all, mammalian cells. There is evidence for the existence of additional cellular proteins sharing at least some of the sequence motifs of p300 and CBP. Members of this protein family also appear to be present in Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila, but, based on the recently published complete genomic sequence, not in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Thus, p300/ CBP-like proteins are likely confined to multicellular organisms where they may fulfill specific functions required for the proper growth and development. This view is supported by the occurrence of multiple developmental and proliferative defects in patients suffering from Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome which is due to an inactivating mutation in one CBP allele.

An essential role for p300/CBP in the cellular response to hypoxia.

p300 and CBP are homologous transcription adapters targeted by the E1A oncoprotein. They participate in numerous biological processes, including cell cycle arrest, differentiation, and transcription activation. p300 and/or CBP (p300/CBP) also coactivate CREB. How they participate in these processes is not yet known. In a search for specific p300 binding proteins, we have cloned the intact cDNA for HIF-1 alpha. This transcription factor mediates hypoxic induction of genes encoding certain glycolytic enzymes, erythropoietin (Epo), and vascular endothelial growth factor. Hypoxic conditions lead to the formation of a DNA binding complex containing both HIF-1 alpha and p300/CBP. Hypoxia-induced transcription from the Epo promoter was specifically enhanced by ectopic p300 and inhibited by E1A binding to p300/CBP. Hypoxia-induced VEGF and Epo mRNA synthesis were similarly inhibited by E1A. Hence, p300/CBP-HIF complexes participate in the induction of hypoxia-responsive genes, including one (vascular endothelial growth factor) that plays a major role in tumor angiogenesis. Paradoxically, these data, to our knowledge for the first time, suggest that p300/ CBP are active in both transformation suppression and tumor development.

Interaction and functional collaboration of p300/CBP and bHLH proteins in muscle and B-cell differentiation.

Differentiation of skeletal muscle cells and B lymphocytes is regulated by basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) proteins. Both differentiation programs are inhibited by the adenovirus E1A oncoprotein. Analysis of E1A mutants has implicated two of its cellular-binding proteins, p300 and CBP, in controlling certain aspects of differentiation. We find that p300 can cooperate with tissue-specific bHLH proteins in activating target genes and requires only the bHLH domain of such proteins to stimulate E box-directed transcription. Importantly, the ability of bHLH proteins to activate transcription correlates with the presence of p300/CBP in E box-dependent DNA-binding complexes, because both phenomena require at least two adjacent E-box motifs. Microinjection of p300/CBP antibodies into myoblasts blocks terminal differentiation, cell fusion, and transcriptional activity of myogenic bHLH proteins. These results suggest that the function of p300/CBP is essential for the execution of key aspects of cellular differentiation.

p300 is a component of an estrogen receptor coactivator complex.

The estrogen receptor (ER) is a ligand-dependent transcription factor that regulates expression of target genes in response to estrogen in concert with other cellular signaling pathways. This suggests that the mechanism by which ER transmits an activating signal to the general transcription machinery may include factors that integrate these diverse signals. We have previously characterized the estrogen receptor-associated protein, ERAP160, as a factor that complexes with ER in an agonist-dependent manner. We have now found that the transcriptional coactivator p300 associates with agonist bound ER and augments ligand-dependent activation by ER. Our studies show that an ER coactivator complex involves a direct hormone-dependent interaction between ER and ERAP160, resulting in the recruitment of p300. In addition, antibodies directed against the cloned steroid receptor coactivator 1 (SRC1) recognize ERAP160. The known role of p300 in multiple signal transduction pathways, including those involving the second messenger cAMP, suggests p300 functions as a point of integration between ER and these other pathways.

Cooperation of Stat2 and p300/CBP in signalling induced by interferon-alpha.

The transcription factor ISGF3 transduces interferon (IFN)-alpha signals and activates the transcription of cellular antiviral defence genes. Adenovirus E1A blocks the IFN-alpha response, allowing unhindered viral replication. ISGF3 consists of Stat1, Stat2 and p48. Here we show that p300 and/or CBP (CREB-binding protein), which are transcription adaptors targeted by E1A, interact specifically with Stat2. Binding occurs between the first cysteine-histidine-rich region of p300/CBP and the carboxy-terminal segment of Stat2, a domain essential for ISGF3 function. We find that this domain of Stat2 has transactivation potential, which correlates with its binding to p300/CBP. Moreover, E1A represses Stat2 transactivation and IFN-alpha-activated transcription by inhibiting p300/CBP function. This provides a new mechanism for inhibition of the IFN-alpha-activated antiviral response by E1A, and supports the view that E1A binding to p300/CBP has functional significance for adenovirus replication in its natural host.

Association of p300 and CBP with simian virus 40 large T antigen.

p300 and the CREB-binding protein CBP are two large nuclear phosphoproteins that are structurally highly related. Both function, in part, as transcriptional adapters and are targeted by the adenovirus E1A oncoprotein. We show here that p300 and CBP interact with another transforming protein, the simian virus 40 large T antigen (T). This interaction depends on the integrity of a region of T which is critical for its transforming and mitogenic properties and includes its LXCXE Rb-binding motif. T interferes with normal p300 and CBP function on at least two different levels. The presence of T alters the phosphorylation states of both proteins and inhibits their transcriptional activities on certain promoters. Although E1A and T show little sequence similarity, they interact with the same domain of p300 and CBP, suggesting that this region exhibits considerable flexibility in accommodating diverse protein ligands.

Phosphorylation of the adenovirus E1A-associated 300 kDa protein in response to retinoic acid and E1A during the differentiation of F9 cells.

Transcription of the c-jun gene is up-regulated by either retinoic acid (RA) or adenovirus E1A during the differentiation of F9 cells. We show here that RA and E1A induce phosphorylation of the E1A-associated 300 kDa protein (p300) during the differentiation of F9 cells. The region of E1A that is required for interaction with cellular protein p300 overlaps with the region of E1A required for E1A to induce expression of the c-jun gene. Treatment of F9 cells with RA or infection of the cells by adenovirus led to a decrease in the electrophoretic mobility of p300. Phosphatase treatment of p300 from RA-treated or adenovirus-infected F9 cells reversed the changes in migration of p300, indicating that RA- and E1A-mediated changes in the mobility of p300 were due to phosphorylation. We also found factors, designated DRF1 and DRF2, that bound specifically to a sequence element that is necessary and sufficient for RA- and E1A-mediated up-regulation of the c-jun gene. The mobility of DRF complexes was changed by E1A or RA and the complexes were supershifted by addition of a polyclonal p300 antiserum. Moreover, overexpression of p300 resulted in an increase in the level of DRF1 complex. p300 fused to the DNA binding domain of the E2 protein of papilloma virus stimulated E2-dependent reporter activity in response to RA or E1A in F9 cells. Our results suggest that p300 is part of the DRF complexes, that it is differentially phosphorylated in undifferentiated versus differentiated cells and that it is likely involved in regulating transcription of the c-jun gene during F9 cell differentiation.

Involvement of the cell-cycle inhibitor Cip1/WAF1 and the E1A-associated p300 protein in terminal differentiation.

The mechanism of cell cycle withdrawal during terminal differentiation is poorly understood. We report here that the cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor p21Cip1/WAF1 is induced at early times of both keratinocyte and myoblast differentiation. p21Cip1/WAF1 induction is accompanied by a drastic inhibition of total Cdk2, as well as p21Cip1/WAF1-associated CDK kinase activities. p21Cip1/WAF1 has been implicated in p53-mediated G1 arrest and apoptosis. In keratinocyte differentiation, Cip1/WAF1 induction is observed even in cells derived from p53-null mice. Similarly, keratinocyte differentiation is associated with induction of Cip1/WAF1 promoter activity in both wild-type and p53-negative keratinocytes. Induction of the Cip1/WAF1 promoter upon differentiation is abolished by expression of an adenovirus E1A oncoprotein (d1922/947), which is unable to bind p105-Rb, p107, or cyclin A but which still binds the nuclear phosphoprotein p300. Overexpression of p300 can suppress the E1A effect, independent of its direct binding to E1A. Thus, terminal differentiation-induced growth arrest in both keratinocyte and myoblast systems is associated with induction of Cip1/WAF1 expression. During keratinocyte differentiation, Cip1/WAF1 induction does not require p53 but depends on the transcriptional modulator p300.

Non-sialate inhibitor of influenza A/WSN/33 neuraminidase.

An N1 strain of influenza A virus neuraminidase (A/WSN/33 NA) was purified and used to screen for inhibitors. As a result, a well-known tuberculostatic, 4'-formylacetanilide thiosemicarbazone (or thiacetazone), was identified. Thiacetazone is a non-sialate compound and inhibits the enzyme in a noncompetitive manner with respect to the substrate sialic acid. Mechanistic studies indicate that the inhibition was due to the competition of thiacetazone with Ca2+, which maintains N1 neuraminidase in an active conformation. The Ki for the inhibition was estimated to be about 4 microM. Equilibrium exchange experiments revealed that when purified A/WSN/33 NA was incubated with 5 microM 45CaCl2, 2 mol of 45Ca2+ ion was exchanged into each mole of NA tetramer and subsequently displaced from the enzyme upon the introduction of the inhibitor. Inhibition of plaque formation by thiacetazone in an MDCK cell culture that had been infected with the influenza A/WSN/33 virus was demonstrated. Thiacetazone was highly specific for A/WSN/33 neuraminidase, since little effect was noted when it was tested against NAs from the other strains of influenza virus or from bacteria. This compound might represent a group of non-sialate inhibitors of influenza NA that bind to a noncatalytic or an allosteric site on the enzyme.