Dioxin induces localized, graded changes in chromatin structure: implications for Cyp1A1 gene transcription.

In mouse hepatoma cells, the environmental contaminant 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD, or dioxin) induces Cyp1A1 gene transcription, a process that requires two basic helix-loop-helix regulatory proteins, the aromatic hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) and the aromatic hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator (Arnt). We have used a ligation-mediated PCR technique to analyze dioxin-induced changes in protein-DNA interactions and chromatin structure of the Cyp1A1 enhancer-promoter in its native chromosomal setting. Dioxin-induced binding of the AhR/Arnt heteromer to enhancer chromatin is associated with a localized (about 200 bp) alteration in chromatin structure that is manifested by increased accessibility of the DNA; these changes probably reflect direct disruption of a nucleosome by AhR/Arnt. Dioxin induces analogous AhR/Arnt-dependent changes in chromatin structure and accessibility at the Cyp1A1 promoter. However, the changes at the promoter must occur by a different, more indirect mechanism, because they are induced from a distance and do not reflect a local effect of AhR/Arnt binding. Dose-response experiments indicate that the changes in chromatin structure at the enhancer and promoter are graded and mirror the graded induction of Cyp1A1 transcription by dioxin. We discuss these results in terms of a TCDD-induced shift in an equilibrium between nucleosomal and nonnucleosomal chromatin configurations.

Transactivation domains facilitate promoter occupancy for the dioxin-inducible CYP1A1 gene in vivo.

We have studied the transcriptional regulation of the dioxin-inducible mouse CYP1A1 gene in its native chromosomal setting. We analyzed the ability of aromatic hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) mutants and AhR chimeras to restore dioxin responsiveness to the CYP1A1 gene in AhR-defective mouse hepatoma cells. Our data reveal that transactivation domains in AhR's C-terminal half mediate occupancy of the nuclear factor 1 site and TATA box for the CYP1A1 promoter in vivo. Transactivation domains of VP16 and AhR nuclear translocator, but not Sp1, can substitute for AhR's C-terminal half in facilitating protein binding at the promoter. Our data also reveal an apparent linear relationship between promoter occupancy and CYP1A1 gene expression in chromatin. These findings provide new insights into the in vivo mechanism of transcriptional activation for an interesting mammalian gene.

Dioxin-induced CYP1A1 transcription in vivo: the aromatic hydrocarbon receptor mediates transactivation, enhancer-promoter communication, and changes in chromatin structure.

We have analyzed the dioxin-inducible transcriptional control mechanism for the mouse CYP1A1 gene in its native chromosomal context. Our genetic and biochemical studies indicate that a C-terminal segment of the aromatic hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) contains latent transactivation capability and communicates the induction signal from enhancer to promoter. Thus, transactivation and enhancer-promoter communication may be congruent functions of AhR. Both functions require heterodimerization between AhR and the AhR nuclear translocator (Arnt). Our findings also indicate that heterodimerization activates AhR's latent transactivation function and silences that of Arnt. Furthermore, removal of Arnt's transactivation domain does not affect dioxin-induced CYP1A1 transcription in vivo. In addition, our studies demonstrate that dioxin-induced changes in chromatin structure occur by different mechanisms at the CYP1A1 enhancer and promoter and that events at an enhancer can be experimentally dissociated from events at the cognate promoter during mechanistic analyses of mammalian transcription in vivo.

2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin induces the nuclear translocation of two XRE binding proteins in mice.

The administration of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) and 3-methylcholanthrene (3MC) to mice results in their binding to the ligand binding portion of the cytosolic dioxin-(Ah)-receptor, followed by translocation of the Ah receptor complex to the nucleus where the DNA binding form of the receptor can be measured by gel retardation analysis. In this report, extended electrophoresis of the nuclear DNA binding proteins isolated from liver demonstrate that TCDD and 3MC induce two nuclear DNA binding proteins in Ah-responsive C57BL/6 mice, while only TCDD induces these proteins in the Ah-nonresponsive DBA/2 mice. The two TCDD inducible (TI) nuclear DNA binding proteins, identified as TI-1 and TI-2, bind specifically to the Cypla-1 gene dioxin-(Ah)-receptor enhancer sequences (XREs) concordant with the properties of the Ah receptor. TI-1 is the predominant inducible form that is present in liver and extrahepatic tissues and most likely represents what is thought to be the Ah receptor, while TI-2 represents a minor form that is found only in liver. The nuclear induction of the Ah receptor by TCDD can be inhibited by phorbol esters such as TPA (Okino et al., 1992), but analysis of nuclear TI-1 and TI-2 shows that TPA can selectively inhibit the appearance of TI-1. The results of differential expression with regard to tissue and also inhibition by TPA suggests that TI-1 and TI-2 are under different modes of regulation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The aromatic hydrocarbon receptor, transcription, and endocrine aspects of dioxin action.

The widespread and persistent environmental contaminant 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin elicits adaptive and adverse biological responses by inducing changes in gene transcription. Some of dioxin's effects reflect disruption of endocrine homeostasis. The aromatic hydrocarbon receptor protein, together with its heterodimerization partner, the aromatic hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator protein, mediates dioxin action. There are notable similarities between the mechanism of dioxin action and the mechanisms of steroid/retinoid/thyroid hormone action. Studies of dioxin action may provide insights into the regulation of hormone-responsive genes and endocrine physiology.

Accumulation of the nuclear dioxin (Ah) receptor and transcriptional activation of the mouse Cyp1a-1 and Cyp1a-2 genes.

The treatment of C57BL/6 mice with 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) leads to the nuclear uptake of the arylhydrocarbon receptor (AhR) and transcriptional activation of Cyp1a-1 and Cyp1a-2 (S. T. Okino, et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267, 6991, 1992). In the present study, early nuclear uptake of the AhR and its role in transcriptional activation of the Cyp1 genes have been evaluated. After 30 min following a dose of TCDD to C57BL/6 mice, the AhR could be detected in liver nuclei. The effect of TCDD treatment within 30 min enhanced the transcriptional rate of the Cyp1a-2 gene to 70% of its maximal rate, with maximal levels of transcription occurring after 1 h. Early increases in 1a-2 mRNA were also observed by 30 min and increased to maximal levels by 12 h. In contrast, the levels of Cyp1a-1 transcription were 5 to 10% of maximal levels at 30 min, and gradually increased to maximal levels by 2 h. Concordant with the levels of transcription, 1a-1 mRNA was not detected until 1 h following TCDD treatment. While the AhR is responsible for transcriptional activation of the Cyp1a-1 gene, the concordant increase in the nuclear accumulation of the ligand-dependent AhR and Cyp1a-2 gene transcription suggests that the receptor plays an important role in the regulation of the Cyp1a-2 gene.

Phorbol esters inhibit the dioxin receptor-mediated transcriptional activation of the mouse Cyp1a-1 and Cyp1a-2 genes by 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin.

Tetradecanoyl phorbol acetate (TPA) has been shown to inhibit 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)-induced mouse P450IA1 benzo[a]pyrene hydroxylase activity (Raunio, H., and Pelkonen, O. (1983) Cancer Res. 43, 782-786). When we co-administered TPA and TCDD to C57BL/6 mice, the accumulation of TCDD-inducible liver P450IA1 and P450IA2 mRNA, as well as kidney P450IA1 mRNA, was greatly inhibited. When nuclear run-on assays were conducted, maximal levels of transcriptional activation were achieved for both liver Cyp1a-1 and Cyp1a-2 with 1 micrograms/kg (approximately equal to 3.0 nmol/kg) TCDD. TCDD elicited a dose-dependent increase in the rates of gene transcription, which paralleled the induction of P450IA1 and P450IA2 mRNA. Only Cyp1a-1 gene transcription was elevated in kidney. When these experiments were repeated following the co-administration of TPA with TCDD, the levels of TCDD-mediated transcriptional increases in liver Cyp1a-1 and Cyp1a-2 and P450IA1 and P450IA2 mRNAs were dramatically inhibited. The reduction in Cyp1a gene transcription by TPA could be accounted for by reduced DNA binding of the dioxin receptor to the xenobiotic-responsive element (XRE) sequences, as measured by gel-retardation analysis. Analysis of nuclear [3H]TCDD dioxin receptor by sucrose density gradients demonstrated that the inhibition of Cyp1a gene transcription and DNA binding by TPA resulted from a reduction in nuclear dioxin receptor concentration.

Hypoxia-inducible mammalian gene expression analyzed in vivo at a TATA-driven promoter and at an initiator-driven promoter.

We have analyzed protein-DNA interactions in vivo at transcriptional control elements for two hypoxia-inducible genes in mouse hepatoma cells. The promoter for the phosphoglycerate kinase 1 (PGK1) gene contains an initiator element, but no TATA sequence, whereas the promoter for the glucose transporter 1 (Glut1) gene contains a TATA element but no initiator sequence. Our findings reveal hypoxia-inducible, Arnt-dependent occupancy of DNA recognition sites for hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) upstream of both target genes. The conserved recognition motif among the five recognition sites is 5'-CGTG-3'. The PGK1 promoter exhibits constitutive occupancy of a binding site for an unknown protein(s); however, we detect no protein-DNA interaction at the initiator element, in either uninduced or induced cells. The Glut1 promoter also exhibits constitutive protein binding; in addition, the TATA element exhibits partial occupancy in uninduced cells and increased occupancy under hypoxic conditions. We find no evidence for hypoxia-induced changes in chromatin structure of either gene. Time-course analyses of the Glut1 gene reveal a temporal relationship between occupancy of HIF-1 sites and TATA element occupancy. Our findings suggest that the promoters for both hypoxia-responsive genes constitutively maintain an accessible chromatin configuration and that HIF-1 facilitates transcription by recruiting and/or stabilizing a transcription factor(s), such as TFIID, at both promoters.

Human cytochrome P-450 4 mRNA and gene: part of a multigene family that contains Alu sequences in its mRNA.

Several overlapping lambda gt11 cDNA clones have been sequenced and shown to encode for the full-length human cytochrome P-450 4. The structure and location of the exons and flanking intron regions were also identified from a lambda EMBL-3 human genomic clone that encodes the full-length human P-450 4 gene. The human P-450 4 mRNA is flanked by 62 base pairs of 5'- and 1508 base pairs of 3'-noncoding sequence, with 1548 bases that encode a protein of 516 amino acids (Mr, 58,376). The predicted amino acid sequence of human P-450 4 is 69% and 70% homologous to its equivalent in mouse and rat, respectively, 75% homologous to rabbit P-450 4, and 68% homologous to human P1-450. The 7.6-kilobase gene encodes 3118 nucleotides of exon sequence that is separated by six introns into seven exons. Exon 7, which is 1802 nucleotides, contains three inverse/complement Alu sequences that are organized in tandem. Comparison of the genomic DNA sequence of the human P-450 4 gene with the human P1-450 and related genes in rat and mouse and the identification of the amino acid residues and triplet codon at each exon-intron junction show that the location of each intron in the human P-450 4 gene is conserved within this gene family. Although the length and homology of the introns within a related gene family may not be conserved, the location of intronic sequences may be an important determinant in the identification of related P-450 genes.

Cloning and isolation of human cytochrome P-450 cDNAs homologous to dioxin-inducible rabbit mRNAs encoding P-450 4 and P-450 6.

Human cytochrome P-450s structurally related to 2,3,7,8-tetrachloro-p-dioxin (TCDD)-inducible rabbit P-450 4 and 6 have been cloned from a human liver cDNA library. The human P-450 4 cDNA clone, hpP-450 4, and the human P-450 6 cDNA clone, hpP-450 6, were identified by hybridization to rabbit P-450 4 and P-450 6 cDNAs, respectively. DNA sequence analysis demonstrates that hpP-450 4 is 83% and 75% homologous to rabbit P-450 4 and P-450 6 mRNAs, respectively, whereas hpP-450 6 is 79% and 72% homologous to rabbit P-450 6 and P-450 4, respectively. A comparison of DNA sequence of the two human cDNA clones shows they are 80% homologous. This is similar to the homology found between the cDNA sequences of rabbit P-450 4 and P-450 6. Northern blot analysis has shown that the human P-450 4 mRNA is approximately 3000 bases, while the human P-450 6 mRNA is 2600 bases in length. Clone hpP-450 4 preferentially hybridizes to TCDD-inducible rabbit P-450 4 and mouse P3-450 mRNAs, whereas hpP-450 6 preferentially hybridizes to TCDD-inducible rabbit P-450 6 and mouse P1-450 mRNAs. Both hpP-450 4 and hpP-450 6 recognize different genomic fragments, indicating that each is encoded by different genes. These results indicate the existence of at least two P-450 genes in humans that are highly homologous to the TCDD-inducible P-450s in rabbits and mice.

Characterization of multiple human cytochrome P-450 1 cDNAs. The chromosomal localization of the gene and evidence for alternate RNA splicing.

Employing the rabbit liver progesterone-21-hydroxylase P-450 1 cDNA as a probe (Tukey, R.H., Okino, S., Barnes, H., Griffin, K.J., and Johnson, E.F. (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 13347-13354), we have identified a highly homologous (81% within the coding region) human liver cDNA, termed Hp1-1, that encodes a 490-amino acid protein. Comparison of the predicted translation products between the human and rabbit homologues demonstrates that the two proteins are 73% homologous, while increasing to 82% similarity when allowing for conserved amino changes. The human P-450 1 is 82% homologous to the s-mephenytoin 4-hydroxylase (Umbenhauer, D. R., Martin, M. V., Lloyd, R. S., and Guengerich, F. P. (1987) Biochemistry 26, 1094-1099). Southern blot analysis using various portions of the human P-450 1 cDNA as probes indicates that the human P-450 1 gene is part of a larger gene family but can be selectively identified by using a 3'-noncoding portion of the cDNA. Identification of the gene from a panel of human-rodent somatic cell hybrids using the conserved 3' portion of the human P-450 1 cDNA as a probe places the location of the gene on human chromosome 10. Results are also presented which demonstrate that the human P-450 1 gene transcript is processed by an alternate RNA-splicing mechanism that generates two mRNA products, one which represents the functional transcript, and the other a form of mRNA that is not capable of encoding a functional P-450.

Oncogene jun encodes a sequence-specific trans-activator similar to AP-1.

Proto-oncogenes encode proteins with three main sites of action: the cell-surface membrane, the cytoplasm and the nucleus. Although the exact biochemical function of most proto-oncogene products is not understood, several of them are known to be involved in signal transduction. A role in gene regulation through DNA binding has been suggested for a recently isolated member of the group of oncogenes acting at the nucleus, v-jun. The C-terminus of the putative v-jun-encoded protein is similar in sequence to the C-terminus of the yeast transcriptional activator GCN4 (refs 8, 9), which forms its minimal DNA-binding domain. GCN4 binds to specific sites whose consensus sequence is highly similar to the recognition sequence of the mammalian transcriptional activator AP-1 (refs 12, 13). Like GCN4, AP-1 binds to promoter elements of specific genes and activates their transcription. Because of the similarity between the recognition sites for GCN4 and AP-1, we examined the possibility that AP-1 could be the product of the c-jun proto-oncogene. The experimental results reported here indicate that the JUN oncoprotein is a sequence-specific transcriptional activator similar to AP-1.

Cytochromes P450 5: induction of cytochrome P4501A1: a model for analyzing mammalian gene transcription.

The induction of microsomal cytochrome P4501A1 by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons represents an interesting response by which mammalian cells adapt to xenobiotic exposure. Enzyme induction reflects increased transcription of the corresponding CYP1A1 gene. Analyses of the induction mechanism using genetic, biochemical, and molecular biological approaches have revealed a novel transcriptional regulatory pathway that involves ligand-dependent heterodimerization between two basic helix-loop-helix proteins (the Ah receptor and Arnt), interaction of the heterodimer with a xenobiotic-responsive enhancer, transmission of the induction signal from the enhancer to the CYP1A1 promoter, and alterations in chromatin structure. Current techniques permit examination of the induction mechanism in intact cells and analyses of the CYP1A1 gene in its native chromosomal configuration. Such experiments generate new insights into the control of mammalian transcription that are of relatively broad interest.

Regulation of GLUT1 gene transcription by the serine/threonine kinase Akt1.

We used mouse hepatoma (Hepa1c1c7) cells to study the role of the serine/threonine kinase Akt in the induction of GLUT1 gene expression. In order to selectively turn on the Akt kinase cascade, we expressed a hydroxytamoxifen-regulatable form of Akt (myristoylated Akt1 estrogen receptor chimera (MER-Akt1)) in the Hepa1c1c7 cells; we verified that hydroxytamoxifen stimulates MER-Akt1 activity to a similar extent as the activation of endogenous Akt by insulin. Our studies reveal that stimulation of MER-Akt1 by hydroxytamoxifen induces GLUT1 mRNA and protein accumulation to levels comparable to that induced by insulin; therefore, activation of the Akt cascade suffices to induce GLUT1 gene expression in this cell system. Furthermore, expression of a kinase-inactive Akt mutant partially inhibits the response of the GLUT1 gene to insulin. Additional studies reveal that the induction of GLUT1 mRNA by Akt and by insulin reflects increased mRNA synthesis and not decreased mRNA degradation. Our findings imply that the GLUT1 gene responds to insulin at the transcriptional level and that Akt mediates a step in the activation of GLUT1 gene expression in this system.

Cloning and characterization of cDNAs encoding 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin-inducible rabbit mRNAs for cytochrome P-450 isozymes 4 and 6.

Monoclonal antibodies toward rabbit liver cytochrome P-450 isozyme 6 (P-450 6) were used to identify several recombinant clones from a pBR322 cDNA library that express beta-lactamase-P-450 6 hybrid proteins. The nucleic acid sequence and predicted amino acid sequence of a rabbit P-450 6 cDNA shows a high degree of homology with rat P-450c and mouse P1-450. When used as a probe to rescreen the library, the P-450 6 cDNA hybridized to several heterologous classes of cDNAs. One such class was shown to encode P-450 4 by comparison of its predicted amino acid sequence to amino acid sequences of cysteine-containing tryptic peptides derived from P-450 4. DNA sequence analysis of a cDNA clone belonging to a third class demonstrated that it contained a 131-base-pair intervening sequencing when compared to the cDNA coding for P-450 6. This sequence corresponds in location to intron E of the rat P-450c gene. Blot-hybridization analysis demonstrated that 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) dramatically induced P-450 4 and 6 mRNAs, which differ in size. The sizes of these mRNAs differ from their analogs in the mouse as a result of divergence in the 3' untranslated portions of the mRNAs.