title: Regulation of the Epstein-Barr virus DNA polymerase gene.
abstract: The gene (pol) encoding the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA polymerase is a member of the "early" class of viral genes which are expressed shortly after activation of latent virus infection. First, mRNA from the EBV-producing cell line, B95-8, treated with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate and sodium butyrate to induce lytic replication and expression of this gene was analyzed. Northern (RNA) analysis revealed a message of 3.7 kb found only in induced cells. 5' mapping of pol mRNA by S1 nuclease and primer extension analyses indicates that transcription initiates at tightly clustered sites within a G + C-rich region 126 bp upstream of the open reading frame. The same initiation region was identified in two other EBV-infected cell lines, P3HR1 and Raji, after induction. Second, a 1.29-kb genomic fragment containing this region, when cloned upstream of the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase reporter gene, demonstrated promoter activity in lymphoid cells cotransfected with pEBV-RZ, a genomic expression construct that includes genes for the EBV immediate-early transactivator proteins, BZLF-1 and BRLF-1. Within the upstream 1.29-kb sequence, two regions of 140 bp and 101 bp appear to be needed for promoter activity. These results demonstrate that unlike most EBV genes studied thus far, the pol gene contains multiple transcriptional start sites. The upstream regulatory region of the promoter for the pol gene does not contain canonical promoter elements such as TATA and CAAT boxes and, furthermore, is not constitutively active but requires transactivation by two or more viral proteins.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill 27599.
authors.forename: F B
authors.initials: FB
authors.lastname: Furnari
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Adams
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Pagano
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000382:microbiology; D001483:Base Sequence; D015500:Chloramphenicol O-Acetyltransferase / Q000235:genetics; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D004259:DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase / Q000235:genetics*; D004790:Enzyme Induction; D015967:Gene Expression Regulation, Viral; D005814:Genes, Viral / Q000235:genetics*; D015751:Genes, pol / Q000235:genetics; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000235:genetics*; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000235:genetics*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D015533:Transcriptional Activation; D014162:Transfection
chemical_list: D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D015500:Chloramphenicol O-Acetyltransferase; D004259:DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase