Skip to main content
PMC home page
Journal of Virology logoLink to Journal of Virology
. 1990 Dec;64(12):6121–6129. doi: 10.1128/jvi.64.12.6121-6129.1990

Chemical synthesis of human papillomavirus type 16 E7 oncoprotein: autonomous protein domains for induction of cellular DNA synthesis and for trans activation.

J A Rawls 1, R Pusztai 1, M Green 1
PMCID: PMC248786  PMID: 2173783

Abstract

The human papillomavirus type 16 E7 protein belongs to a family of nuclear oncoproteins that share amino acid sequences and functional homology. To localize biochemical activities associated with E7, we chemically synthesized the full-length 98-amino-acid polypeptide and several deletion mutant peptides. We show that the E7 polypeptide is biologically active and possesses at least two functional domains; the first induces cellular DNA synthesis in quiescent rodent cells, and the second trans activates the adenovirus E1A-inducible early E2 promoter and binds zinc. Further, each domain is autonomous and can function on separate peptides. DNA synthesis induction activity maps within the N-terminal portion of the molecule, which contains sequences related to adenovirus E1A conserved domains 1 and 2 required for cell transformation and binding of the retinoblastoma gene product. trans-Activation and Zn-binding activities map within the C-terminal portion of the molecule, a region which contains Cys-X-X-Cys motifs. trans Activation does not require protein synthesis, implying a mechanism that involves interaction with a preexisting cellular factor(s). E7 trans activates the adenovirus E2 promoter but not other E1A-inducible viral promoters, suggesting the possibility that E7 trans activation involves interaction, directly or indirectly, with cellular transcription factor E2F.

Full text

PDF
6124

Images in this article

6123Image
on p.6123
6124Image
on p.6124
6126Image
on p.6126

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Baker C. C., Phelps W. C., Lindgren V., Braun M. J., Gonda M. A., Howley P. M. Structural and transcriptional analysis of human papillomavirus type 16 sequences in cervical carcinoma cell lines. J Virol. 1987 Apr;61(4):962–971. doi: 10.1128/jvi.61.4.962-971.1987. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Barbosa M. S., Lowy D. R., Schiller J. T. Papillomavirus polypeptides E6 and E7 are zinc-binding proteins. J Virol. 1989 Mar;63(3):1404–1407. doi: 10.1128/jvi.63.3.1404-1407.1989. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Bedell M. A., Jones K. H., Laimins L. A. The E6-E7 region of human papillomavirus type 18 is sufficient for transformation of NIH 3T3 and rat-1 cells. J Virol. 1987 Nov;61(11):3635–3640. doi: 10.1128/jvi.61.11.3635-3640.1987. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Berg J. M. Metal ions in proteins: structural and functional roles. Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol. 1987;52:579–585. doi: 10.1101/sqb.1987.052.01.066. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Clark-Lewis I., Aebersold R., Ziltener H., Schrader J. W., Hood L. E., Kent S. B. Automated chemical synthesis of a protein growth factor for hemopoietic cells, interleukin-3. Science. 1986 Jan 10;231(4734):134–139. doi: 10.1126/science.3079915. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Danos O., Katinka M., Yaniv M. Human papillomavirus 1a complete DNA sequence: a novel type of genome organization among papovaviridae. EMBO J. 1982;1(2):231–236. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1982.tb01152.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Dery C. V., Herrmann C. H., Mathews M. B. Response of individual adenovirus promoters to the products of the E1A gene. Oncogene. 1987;2(1):15–23. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Devereux J., Haeberli P., Smithies O. A comprehensive set of sequence analysis programs for the VAX. Nucleic Acids Res. 1984 Jan 11;12(1 Pt 1):387–395. doi: 10.1093/nar/12.1part1.387. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Dyson N., Buchkovich K., Whyte P., Harlow E. The cellular 107K protein that binds to adenovirus E1A also associates with the large T antigens of SV40 and JC virus. Cell. 1989 Jul 28;58(2):249–255. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(89)90839-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Dyson N., Howley P. M., Münger K., Harlow E. The human papilloma virus-16 E7 oncoprotein is able to bind to the retinoblastoma gene product. Science. 1989 Feb 17;243(4893):934–937. doi: 10.1126/science.2537532. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Edmonds C., Vousden K. H. A point mutational analysis of human papillomavirus type 16 E7 protein. J Virol. 1989 Jun;63(6):2650–2656. doi: 10.1128/jvi.63.6.2650-2656.1989. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Ewen M. E., Ludlow J. W., Marsilio E., DeCaprio J. A., Millikan R. C., Cheng S. H., Paucha E., Livingston D. M. An N-terminal transformation-governing sequence of SV40 large T antigen contributes to the binding of both p110Rb and a second cellular protein, p120. Cell. 1989 Jul 28;58(2):257–267. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(89)90840-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Ferguson B., Krippl B., Andrisani O., Jones N., Westphal H., Rosenberg M. E1A 13S and 12S mRNA products made in Escherichia coli both function as nucleus-localized transcription activators but do not directly bind DNA. Mol Cell Biol. 1985 Oct;5(10):2653–2661. doi: 10.1128/mcb.5.10.2653. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Figge J., Smith T. F. Cell-division sequence motif. Nature. 1988 Jul 14;334(6178):109–109. doi: 10.1038/334109a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Freytag S. O. Enforced expression of the c-myc oncogene inhibits cell differentiation by precluding entry into a distinct predifferentiation state in G0/G1. Mol Cell Biol. 1988 Apr;8(4):1614–1624. doi: 10.1128/mcb.8.4.1614. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Fuchs P. G., Iftner T., Weninger J., Pfister H. Epidermodysplasia verruciformis-associated human papillomavirus 8: genomic sequence and comparative analysis. J Virol. 1986 May;58(2):626–634. doi: 10.1128/jvi.58.2.626-634.1986. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Galanti N., Jonak G. J., Soprano K. J., Floros J., Kaczmarek L., Weissman S., Reddy V. B., Tilghman S. M., Baserga R. Characterization and biological activity of cloned simian virus 40 DNA fragments. J Biol Chem. 1981 Jun 25;256(12):6469–6474. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Green M., Loewenstein P. M. Autonomous functional domains of chemically synthesized human immunodeficiency virus tat trans-activator protein. Cell. 1988 Dec 23;55(6):1179–1188. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(88)90262-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Green M., Loewenstein P. M. Demonstration that a chemically synthesized BPV1 oncoprotein and its C-terminal domain function to induce cellular DNA synthesis. Cell. 1987 Dec 4;51(5):795–802. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(87)90102-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Green M., Loewenstein P. M., Pusztai R., Symington J. S. An adenovirus E1A protein domain activates transcription in vivo and in vitro in the absence of protein synthesis. Cell. 1988 Jun 17;53(6):921–926. doi: 10.1016/s0092-8674(88)90429-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Guilfoyle R. A., Osheroff W. P., Rossini M. Two functions encoded by adenovirus early region 1A are responsible for the activation and repression of the DNA-binding protein gene. EMBO J. 1985 Mar;4(3):707–713. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1985.tb03687.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Inagaki Y., Tsunokawa Y., Takebe N., Nawa H., Nakanishi S., Terada M., Sugimura T. Nucleotide sequences of cDNAs for human papillomavirus type 18 transcripts in HeLa cells. J Virol. 1988 May;62(5):1640–1646. doi: 10.1128/jvi.62.5.1640-1646.1988. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Lawrence J. B., Singer R. H. Intracellular localization of messenger RNAs for cytoskeletal proteins. Cell. 1986 May 9;45(3):407–415. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(86)90326-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Lillie J. W., Green M., Green M. R. An adenovirus E1a protein region required for transformation and transcriptional repression. Cell. 1986 Sep 26;46(7):1043–1051. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(86)90704-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Lillie J. W., Loewenstein P. M., Green M. R., Green M. Functional domains of adenovirus type 5 E1a proteins. Cell. 1987 Sep 25;50(7):1091–1100. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(87)90175-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Loewenstein P. M., Green M. In vitro trans-activation by chemically synthesized adenovirus region 3 peptides. Reaction properties and mutational analysis. J Biol Chem. 1989 Dec 25;264(36):21504–21508. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Matlashewski G., Schneider J., Banks L., Jones N., Murray A., Crawford L. Human papillomavirus type 16 DNA cooperates with activated ras in transforming primary cells. EMBO J. 1987 Jun;6(6):1741–1746. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1987.tb02426.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Mitchell P. J., Tjian R. Transcriptional regulation in mammalian cells by sequence-specific DNA binding proteins. Science. 1989 Jul 28;245(4916):371–378. doi: 10.1126/science.2667136. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Moran E., Mathews M. B. Multiple functional domains in the adenovirus E1A gene. Cell. 1987 Jan 30;48(2):177–178. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(87)90418-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  30. Moran E., Zerler B., Harrison T. M., Mathews M. B. Identification of separate domains in the adenovirus E1A gene for immortalization activity and the activation of virus early genes. Mol Cell Biol. 1986 Oct;6(10):3470–3480. doi: 10.1128/mcb.6.10.3470. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  31. Münger K., Phelps W. C., Bubb V., Howley P. M., Schlegel R. The E6 and E7 genes of the human papillomavirus type 16 together are necessary and sufficient for transformation of primary human keratinocytes. J Virol. 1989 Oct;63(10):4417–4421. doi: 10.1128/jvi.63.10.4417-4421.1989. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  32. Phelps W. C., Yee C. L., Münger K., Howley P. M. The human papillomavirus type 16 E7 gene encodes transactivation and transformation functions similar to those of adenovirus E1A. Cell. 1988 May 20;53(4):539–547. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(88)90570-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  33. Reichel R., Kovesdi I., Nevins J. R. Activation of a preexisting cellular factor as a basis for adenovirus E1A-mediated transcription control. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1988 Jan;85(2):387–390. doi: 10.1073/pnas.85.2.387. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  34. Sarin V. K., Kent S. B., Tam J. P., Merrifield R. B. Quantitative monitoring of solid-phase peptide synthesis by the ninhydrin reaction. Anal Biochem. 1981 Oct;117(1):147–157. doi: 10.1016/0003-2697(81)90704-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  35. Sassone-Corsi P., Borrelli E. Promoter trans-activation of protooncogenes c-fos and c-myc, but not c-Ha-ras, by products of adenovirus early region 1A. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1987 Sep;84(18):6430–6433. doi: 10.1073/pnas.84.18.6430. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  36. Sato H., Furuno A., Yoshiike K. Expression of human papillomavirus type 16 E7 gene induces DNA synthesis of rat 3Y1 cells. Virology. 1989 Jan;168(1):195–199. doi: 10.1016/0042-6822(89)90423-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  37. Schiff L. A., Nibert M. L., Fields B. N. Characterization of a zinc blotting technique: evidence that a retroviral gag protein binds zinc. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1988 Jun;85(12):4195–4199. doi: 10.1073/pnas.85.12.4195. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  38. Schneider J. F., Fisher F., Goding C. R., Jones N. C. Mutational analysis of the adenovirus E1a gene: the role of transcriptional regulation in transformation. EMBO J. 1987 Jul;6(7):2053–2060. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1987.tb02470.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  39. Schwarz E., Dürst M., Demankowski C., Lattermann O., Zech R., Wolfsperger E., Suhai S., zur Hausen H. DNA sequence and genome organization of genital human papillomavirus type 6b. EMBO J. 1983;2(12):2341–2348. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1983.tb01744.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  40. Schwarz E., Freese U. K., Gissmann L., Mayer W., Roggenbuck B., Stremlau A., zur Hausen H. Structure and transcription of human papillomavirus sequences in cervical carcinoma cells. Nature. 1985 Mar 7;314(6006):111–114. doi: 10.1038/314111a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  41. Schweinfest C. W., Fujiwara S., Lau L. F., Papas T. S. c-myc can induce expression of G0/G1 transition genes. Mol Cell Biol. 1988 Aug;8(8):3080–3087. doi: 10.1128/mcb.8.8.3080. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  42. Seedorf K., Krämmer G., Dürst M., Suhai S., Röwekamp W. G. Human papillomavirus type 16 DNA sequence. Virology. 1985 Aug;145(1):181–185. doi: 10.1016/0042-6822(85)90214-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  43. Shirasawa H., Tomita Y., Sekiya S., Takamizawa H., Simizu B. Integration and transcription of human papillomavirus type 16 and 18 sequences in cell lines derived from cervical carcinomas. J Gen Virol. 1987 Feb;68(Pt 2):583–591. doi: 10.1099/0022-1317-68-2-583. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  44. Smotkin D., Wettstein F. O. Transcription of human papillomavirus type 16 early genes in a cervical cancer and a cancer-derived cell line and identification of the E7 protein. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1986 Jul;83(13):4680–4684. doi: 10.1073/pnas.83.13.4680. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  45. Spessot R., Inchley K., Hupel T. M., Bacchetti S. Cloning of the herpes simplex virus ICP4 gene in an adenovirus vector: effects on adenovirus gene expression and replication. Virology. 1989 Feb;168(2):378–387. doi: 10.1016/0042-6822(89)90279-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  46. Stabel S., Argos P., Philipson L. The release of growth arrest by microinjection of adenovirus E1A DNA. EMBO J. 1985 Sep;4(9):2329–2336. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1985.tb03934.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  47. Tamanoi F., Stillman B. W. Function of adenovirus terminal protein in the initiation of DNA replication. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1982 Apr;79(7):2221–2225. doi: 10.1073/pnas.79.7.2221. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  48. Tanaka A., Noda T., Yajima H., Hatanaka M., Ito Y. Identification of a transforming gene of human papillomavirus type 16. J Virol. 1989 Mar;63(3):1465–1469. doi: 10.1128/jvi.63.3.1465-1469.1989. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  49. Thalmeier K., Synovzik H., Mertz R., Winnacker E. L., Lipp M. Nuclear factor E2F mediates basic transcription and trans-activation by E1a of the human MYC promoter. Genes Dev. 1989 Apr;3(4):527–536. doi: 10.1101/gad.3.4.527. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  50. Vousden K. H., Jat P. S. Functional similarity between HPV16E7, SV40 large T and adenovirus E1a proteins. Oncogene. 1989 Feb;4(2):153–158. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  51. Watanabe S., Kanda T., Sato H., Furuno A., Yoshiike K. Mutational analysis of human papillomavirus type 16 E7 functions. J Virol. 1990 Jan;64(1):207–214. doi: 10.1128/jvi.64.1.207-214.1990. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  52. Watanabe S., Kanda T., Yoshiike K. Human papillomavirus type 16 transformation of primary human embryonic fibroblasts requires expression of open reading frames E6 and E7. J Virol. 1989 Feb;63(2):965–969. doi: 10.1128/jvi.63.2.965-969.1989. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  53. Weinberg R. A. Oncogenes, antioncogenes, and the molecular bases of multistep carcinogenesis. Cancer Res. 1989 Jul 15;49(14):3713–3721. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  54. Whyte P., Buchkovich K. J., Horowitz J. M., Friend S. H., Raybuck M., Weinberg R. A., Harlow E. Association between an oncogene and an anti-oncogene: the adenovirus E1A proteins bind to the retinoblastoma gene product. Nature. 1988 Jul 14;334(6178):124–129. doi: 10.1038/334124a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  55. Zachow K. R., Ostrow R. S., Faras A. J. Nucleotide sequence and genome organization of human papillomavirus type 5. Virology. 1987 May;158(1):251–254. doi: 10.1016/0042-6822(87)90263-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  56. Zerler B., Roberts R. J., Mathews M. B., Moran E. Different functional domains of the adenovirus E1A gene are involved in regulation of host cell cycle products. Mol Cell Biol. 1987 Feb;7(2):821–829. doi: 10.1128/mcb.7.2.821. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  57. von Knebel Doeberitz M., Oltersdorf T., Schwarz E., Gissmann L. Correlation of modified human papilloma virus early gene expression with altered growth properties in C4-1 cervical carcinoma cells. Cancer Res. 1988 Jul 1;48(13):3780–3786. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  58. zur Hausen H. Papillomaviruses in anogenital cancer as a model to understand the role of viruses in human cancers. Cancer Res. 1989 Sep 1;49(17):4677–4681. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Virology are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES