Mutational analysis of hepatitis B virus enhancer 2.
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is associated with the development of hepatocellular carcinoma in humans. HBV infection is primarily restricted to hepatocytes, and replication and gene expression of HBV require liver-specific transcription factors. Regulation of HBV gene expression has been shown to be controlled by two enhancers, and liver-specific gene expression of HBV can be attributed largely to the activity of enhancer 2. In this study, we have used mutational analysis to identify a 20-base-pair sequence motif essential for the liver-specific enhancer 2 activity. Analysis of the sequence reveals that this motif is similar to the regulatory region of several other liver-specific cellular genes, suggesting that common transcription factors may be involved in the activation of cellular as well as HBV gene expression in hepatocytes.
Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla 92093.
S T
ST
Chen
P
P
La Porte
J K
JK
Yee
D001483:Base Sequence; D002460:Cell Line; D004252:DNA Mutational Analysis; D004742:Enhancer Elements, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000235:genetics*; D008099:Liver / Q000382:microbiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009928:Organ Specificity; D017384:Sequence Deletion; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship