scholarly journals The Oncogenic Potential of the Pax3-FKHR Fusion Protein Requires the Pax3 Homeodomain Recognition Helix but Not the Pax3 Paired-Box DNA Binding Domain

1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 594-601 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Y. P. Lam ◽  
Jack E. Sublett ◽  
Andrew D. Hollenbach ◽  
Martine F. Roussel

ABSTRACT The chimeric transcription factor Pax3-FKHR, produced by the t(2;13)(q35;q14) chromosomal translocation in alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, consists of the two Pax3 DNA binding domains (paired box and homeodomain) fused to the C-terminal forkhead (FKHR) sequences that contain a potent transcriptional activation domain. To determine which of these domains are required for cellular transformation, Pax3, Pax3-FKHR, and selected mutants were retrovirally expressed in NIH 3T3 cells and evaluated for their capacity to promote anchorage-independent cell growth. Mutational analysis revealed that both the third α-helix of the homeodomain and a small region of the FKHR transactivation domain are absolutely required for efficient transformation by the Pax3-FKHR fusion protein. Surprisingly, point mutations in the paired domain that abrogate sequence-specific DNA binding retained transformation potential equivalent to that of the wild-type protein. This finding suggests that DNA binding mediated through the Pax3 paired box is not required for transformation. Our results demonstrate that the integrity of the Pax3 homeodomain recognition helix and the FKHR transactivation domain is necessary for efficient cellular transformation by the Pax3-FKHR fusion protein.

1998 ◽  
Vol 18 (7) ◽  
pp. 4118-4130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan A. Epstein ◽  
Baoliang Song ◽  
Maha Lakkis ◽  
Chiayeng Wang

ABSTRACT The t(2;13) chromosomal translocation occurs at a high frequency in alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, a common pediatric tumor of muscle. This translocation results in the production of a chimeric fusion protein derived from two developmentally regulated transcription factors, PAX3 and FKHR. The two DNA binding modules, the paired domain and the homeodomain, of PAX3 are fused in frame to the transactivation domain of FKHR. Previously, tumor-specific PAX3-FKHR has been shown to bind to DNA sequences normally recognized by wild-type PAX3 and to exhibit relatively enhanced transcriptional activity. The DNA binding sites used to demonstrate that PAX3-FKHR is a more potent transcriptional activator than PAX3 have included recognition sequences for the paired domain of PAX3. In this report, we demonstrate the ability of PAX3-FKHR to activate the product of a growth control gene, platelet-derived growth factor alpha receptor (PDGFαR), by recognizing a paired-type homeodomain binding site located in the PDGFαR promoter. PAX3 alone cannot mediate transcriptional activation of this promoter under the conditions tested. This provides the first evidence that chromosomal translocation results in altered target gene specificity of PAX3-FKHR and suggests a transcriptional target that may play a significant role in oncogenic activity and rhabdomyosarcoma development.


Blood ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 93 (12) ◽  
pp. 4154-4166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert L. Ilaria ◽  
Robert G. Hawley ◽  
Richard A. Van Etten

Abstract STAT5 is a member of the signal transducers and activation of transcription (STAT) family of latent transcription factors activated in a variety of cytokine signaling pathways. We introduced alanine substitution mutations in highly conserved regions of murine STAT5A and studied the mutants for dimerization, DNA binding, transactivation, and dominant negative effects on erythropoietin-induced STAT5-dependent transcriptional activation. The mutations included two near the amino-terminus (W255KR→AAA and R290QQ→AAA), two in the DNA-binding domain (E437E→AA and V466VV→AAA), and a carboxy-terminal truncation of STAT5A (STAT5A/▵53C) analogous to a naturally occurring isoform of rat STAT5B. All of the STAT mutant proteins were tyrosine phosphorylated by JAK2 and heterodimerized with STAT5B except for the WKR mutant, suggesting an important role for this region in STAT5 for stabilizing dimerization. The WKR, EE, and VVV mutants had no detectable DNA-binding activity, and the WKR and VVV mutants, but not EE, were defective in transcriptional induction. The VVV mutant had a moderate dominant negative effect on erythropoietin-induced STAT5 transcriptional activation, which was likely due to the formation of heterodimers that are defective in DNA binding. Interestingly, the WKR mutant had a potent dominant negative effect, comparable to the transactivation domain deletion mutant, ▵53C. Stable expression of either the WKR or ▵53C STAT5 mutants in the murine myeloid cytokine-dependent cell line 32D inhibited both interleukin-3–dependent proliferation and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF)–dependent differentiation, without induction of apoptosis. Expression of these mutants in primary murine bone marrow inhibited G-CSF–dependent granulocyte colony formation in vitro. These results demonstrate that mutations in distinct regions of STAT5 exert dominant negative effects on cytokine signaling, likely through different mechanisms, and suggest a role for STAT5 in proliferation and differentiation of myeloid cells.


1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 3834-3842 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Uemura ◽  
Y Jigami

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae GCR2 gene affects expression of most of the glycolytic genes. We report the nucleotide sequence of GCR2, which can potentially encode a 58,061-Da protein. There is a small cluster of asparagines near the center and a C-terminal region that would be highly charged but overall neutral. Fairly homologous regions were found between Gcr2 and Gcr1 proteins. To test potential interactions, the genetic method of S. Fields and O. Song (Nature [London] 340:245-246, 1989), which uses protein fusions of candidate gene products with, respectively, the N-terminal DNA-binding domain of Gal4 and the C-terminal activation domain II, assessing restoration of Gal4 function, was used. In a delta gal4 delta gal80 strain, double transformation by plasmids containing, respectively, a Gal4 (transcription-activating region)/Gcr1 fusion and a Gal4 (DNA-binding domain)/Gcr2 fusion activated lacZ expression from an integrated GAL1/lacZ fusion, indicating reconstitution of functional Gal4 through the interaction of Gcr1 and Gcr2 proteins. The Gal4 (transcription-activating region)/Gcr1 fusion protein alone complemented the defects of both gcr1 and gcr2 strains. Furthermore, a Rap1/Gcr2 fusion protein partially complemented the defects of gcr1 strains. These results suggest that Gcr2 has transcriptional activation activity and that the GCR1 and GCR2 gene products function together.


2020 ◽  
Vol 295 (13) ◽  
pp. 4212-4223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chun Guo ◽  
Jian Li ◽  
Nickolas Steinauer ◽  
Madeline Wong ◽  
Brent Wu ◽  
...  

In up to 15% of acute myeloid leukemias (AMLs), a recurring chromosomal translocation, termed t(8;21), generates the AML1–eight–twenty-one (ETO) leukemia fusion protein, which contains the DNA-binding domain of Runt-related transcription factor 1 (RUNX1) and almost all of ETO. RUNX1 and the AML1–ETO fusion protein are coexpressed in t(8;21) AML cells and antagonize each other's gene-regulatory functions. AML1–ETO represses transcription of RUNX1 target genes by competitively displacing RUNX1 and recruiting corepressors such as histone deacetylase 3 (HDAC3). Recent studies have shown that AML1–ETO and RUNX1 co-occupy the binding sites of AML1–ETO–activated genes. How this joined binding allows RUNX1 to antagonize AML1–ETO–mediated transcriptional activation is unclear. Here we show that RUNX1 functions as a bona fide repressor of transcription activated by AML1–ETO. Mechanistically, we show that RUNX1 is a component of the HDAC3 corepressor complex and that HDAC3 preferentially binds to RUNX1 rather than to AML1–ETO in t(8;21) AML cells. Studying the regulation of interleukin-8 (IL8), a newly identified AML1–ETO–activated gene, we demonstrate that RUNX1 and HDAC3 collaboratively repress AML1–ETO–dependent transcription, a finding further supported by results of genome-wide analyses of AML1–ETO–activated genes. These and other results from the genome-wide studies also have important implications for the mechanistic understanding of gene-specific coactivator and corepressor functions across the AML1–ETO/RUNX1 cistrome.


1998 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 2444-2454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomohiko Kanno ◽  
Yuka Kanno ◽  
Lin-Feng Chen ◽  
Eiko Ogawa ◽  
Woo-Young Kim ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT A member of the polyomavirus enhancer binding protein 2/core binding factor (PEBP2/CBF) is composed of PEBP2αB1/AML1 (as the α subunit) and a β subunit. It plays an essential role in definitive hematopoiesis and is frequently involved in the chromosomal abnormalities associated with leukemia. In the present study, we report functionally separable modular structures in PEBP2αB1 for DNA binding and for transcriptional activation. DNA binding through the Runt domain of PEBP2αB1 was hindered by the adjacent carboxy-terminal region, and this inhibition was relieved by interaction with the β subunit. Utilizing a reporter assay system in which both the α and β subunits are required to achieve strong transactivation, we uncovered the presence of transcriptional activation and inhibitory domains in PEBP2αB1 that were only apparent in the presence of the β subunit. The inhibitory domain keeps the full transactivation potential of full-length PEBP2αB1 below its maximum potential. Fusion of the transactivation domain of PEBP2αB1 to the yeast GAL4 DNA-binding domain conferred transactivation potential, but further addition of the inhibitory domain diminished the activity. These results suggest that the activity of the α subunit as a transcriptional activator is regulated intramolecularly as well as by the β subunit. PEBP2αB1 and the β subunit were targeted to the nuclear matrix via signals distinct from the nuclear localization signal. Moreover, the transactivation domain by itself was capable of associating with the nuclear matrix, which implies the existence of a relationship between transactivation and nuclear matrix attachment.


2000 ◽  
Vol 182 (24) ◽  
pp. 6975-6982 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janet K. Hatt ◽  
Philip Youngman

ABSTRACT The Spo0A protein of Bacillus subtilis is a DNA-binding protein that is required for the expression of genes involved in the initiation of sporulation. Spo0A binds directly to and both activates and represses transcription from the promoters of several genes required during the onset of endospore formation. The C-terminal 113 residues are known to contain the DNA-binding activity of Spo0A. Previous studies identified a region of the C-terminal half of Spo0A that is highly conserved among species of endospore-formingBacillus and Clostridium and which encodes a putative helix-turn-helix DNA-binding domain. To test the functional significance of this region and determine if this motif is involved in DNA binding, we changed three conserved residues, S210, E213, and R214, to Gly and/or Ala by site-directed mutagenesis. We then isolated and analyzed the five substitution-containing Spo0A proteins for DNA binding and sporulation-specific gene activation. The S210A Spo0A mutant exhibited no change from wild-type binding, although it was defective in spoIIA and spoIIE promoter activation. In contrast, both the E213G and E213A Spo0A variants showed decreased binding and completely abolished transcriptional activation of spoIIA and spoIIE, while the R214G and R214A variants completely abolished both DNA binding and transcriptional activation. These data suggest that these conserved residues are important for transcriptional activation and that the E213 residue is involved in DNA binding.


Blood ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 103 (4) ◽  
pp. 1445-1453 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judy Wai Ping Yam ◽  
Dong-Yan Jin ◽  
Chi Wai So ◽  
Li Chong Chan

Abstract The chimeric MLL-EEN fusion protein is created as a result of chromosomal translocation t(11;19)(q23;p13). EEN, an Src homology 3 (SH3) domain–containing protein in the endophilin family, has been implicated in endocytosis, although little is known about its role in leukemogenesis mediated by the MLL-EEN fusion protein. In this study, we have identified and characterized EBP, a novel EEN binding protein that interacts with the SH3 domain of EEN through a proline-rich motif PPERP. EBP is a ubiquitous protein that is normally expressed in the cytoplasm but is recruited to the nucleus by MLL-EEN with a punctate localization pattern characteristic of the MLL chimeric proteins. EBP interacts simultaneously with EEN and Sos, a guanine-nucleotide exchange factor for Ras. Coexpressoin of EBP with EEN leads to suppression of Ras-induced cellular transformation and Ras-mediated activation of Elk-1. Taken together, our findings suggest a new mechanism for MLL-EEN–mediated leukemogenesis in which MLL-EEN interferes with the Ras-suppressing activities of EBP through direct interaction.


2006 ◽  
Vol 80 (19) ◽  
pp. 9697-9709 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyla Driscoll Carroll ◽  
Wei Bu ◽  
Diana Palmeri ◽  
Sophia Spadavecchia ◽  
Stephen J. Lynch ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) lytic switch protein, Rta, is a ligand-independent inducer of the Notch signal transduction pathway, and KSHV cannot reactivate from latency in cells null for the Notch target protein RBP-Jk. Here we show that Rta promotes DNA binding of RBP-Jk, a mechanism that is fundamentally different from that established for the RBP-Jk-activating proteins, Notch intracellular domain (NICD) and Epstein-Barr virus EBNA2. Although constitutively active RBP-Jk and NICD do not transactivate KSHV promoters independently, cotransfection of an Rta mutant lacking its transactivation domain robustly restores transcriptional activation. Cooperation requires intact DNA binding sites for Rta and RBP-Jk and trimeric complex formation between the three molecules in vitro. In infected cells, RBP-Jk is virtually undetectable on a series of viral and cellular promoters during KSHV latency but is significantly enriched following Rta expression during viral reactivation. Accordingly, Rta, but not EBNA2 and NICD, reactivates the complete viral lytic cycle.


2007 ◽  
Vol 404 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sol Kim ◽  
Jungwoon Lee ◽  
Jungho Kim

Tumour-specific chromosomal rearrangements are known to create chimaeric products with the ability to generate many human cancers. hTAFII68-TEC (where hTAFII68 is human TATA-binding protein-associated factor II 68 and TEC is translocated in extraskeletal chondrosarcoma) is such a fusion product, resulting from a t(9;17) chromosomal translocation found in extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcomas, where the hTAFII68 NTD (N-terminal domain) is fused to TEC protein. To identify proteins that control hTAFII68-TEC function, we used affinity chromatography on immobilized hTAFII68 (NTD) and MALDI-TOF (matrix-assisted laser-desorption ionization–time-of-flight) MS and isolated a novel hTAFII68-TEC-interacting protein, GAPDH (glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase). GAPDH is a glycolytic enzyme that is also involved in the early steps of apoptosis, nuclear tRNA export, DNA replication, DNA repair and transcription. hTAFII68-TEC and GAPDH were co-immunoprecipitated from cell extracts, and glutathione S-transferase pull-down assays revealed that the C-terminus of hTAFII68 (NTD) was required for interaction with GAPDH. In addition, three independent regions of GAPDH (amino acids 1–66, 67–160 and 160–248) were involved in binding to hTAFII68 (NTD). hTAFII68-TEC-dependent transcription was enhanced by GAPDH, but not by a GAPDH mutant defective in hTAFII68-TEC binding. Moreover, a fusion of GAPDH with the GAL4 DNA-binding domain increased the promoter activity of a reporter containing GAL4 DNA-binding sites, demonstrating the presence of a transactivation domain(s) in GAPDH. The results of the present study suggest that the transactivation potential of the hTAFII68-TEC oncogene product is positively modulated by GAPDH.


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