Two conditional tsA mutant simian virus 40 T antigens display marked differences in thermal inactivation.

We have characterized the simian virus 40 (SV40) origin-containing DNA (ori-DNA) replication functions of two SV40 conditional mutant T antigens: tsA438 A-V (tsA58) and tsA357 R-K (tsA30). Both tsA mutant T antigens, immunopurified from recombinant baculovirus-infected insect cells, mediated replication of SV40 ori-DNA in vitro to similar extents as did wild-type T antigen in reactions at 33 degrees C. However, at 41 degrees C, the restrictive temperature, while tsA438 T antigen still generated substantial levels of replication products, tsA357 T antigen did not support any detectable DNA synthesis. Furthermore, preincubation for approximately fourfold-longer time periods at 41 degrees C was required to heat inactivate tsA438 T antigen than to heat inactivate tsA357 T antigen. Unexpectedly, results of analyses of the various DNA replication activities of the two mutant T antigens did not correlate with results from ori-DNA replication reactions. In particular, although tsA357 T antigen was incapable of mediating replication at 41 degrees C at all protein concentrations examined, it displayed either wild-type levels or only partial reductions of the several T-antigen replication-associated activities. These data suggest either that tsA357 T antigen is defective in an as yet unidentified replication function of T antigen or that the combination of its partial defects result in a protein that is unable to support replication. The data also show that two conditional mutant T antigens can be markedly different with respect to thermal sensitivity.     

Simian virus 40 large T-antigen function is required for induction of tetraploid DNA content during lytic infection.

Infection of quiescent CV-1 cells with simian virus 40 mutant tsA30 at 37 degrees C resulted in the induction of two rounds of cellular DNA synthesis in T-antigen-positive cells, as previously described for wild-type simian virus 40. Following infection with tsA30 at 40.5 degrees C, T-antigen-positive cells were induced into S phase and reached a diploid G2 DNA content; however, a second S phase was not initiated. The failure of tsA30-infected CV-1 cells to enter tetraploid S phase at 40.5 degrees C identifies a T-antigen function, distinct from T-antigen functions responsible for stimulation of cell DNA synthesis, which is required for initiation of a second round of DNA synthesis without mitosis.     

Bcl-2 can promote p53-dependent senescence versus apoptosis without affecting the G1/S transition

With the aim to identify events involved in the determination of p53-dependent apoptosis versus growth arrest, we used rat embryo fibroblasts expressing a temperature-sensitive mutant (tsA58) of the SV40 large tumour antigen (LT). Heat-inactivation of LT leads to p53 activation and commitment to a senescent-like state (REtsA15 cell line) or apoptosis (REtsAF cell line). We report that senescence is associated with high levels of the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 protein and a cell cycle arrest in G1 phase, whereas apoptosis is associated with low levels of Bcl-2 and a cell cycle arrest in G2 phase. Here we show that Bcl-2, which can inhibit apoptosis and proliferation, turns the apoptotic phenotype into a senescent-like phenotype in G2 phase. This result suggests that Bcl-2-dependent inhibition of apoptosis could be crucial for the commitment to replicative senescence, whereas its ability to inhibit G1 progression would not be required.     

Simian Virus 40 Deoxyribonucleic Acid Synthesis: the Viral Replicon

Three temperature-sensitive (ts) mutants of simian virus 40 (SV40) in complementation group A (tsA7, tsA28, tsA30) have been isolated and characterized in permissive and restrictive host cells. At 41 C in the AH line of African green monkey kidney cells, the mutants are deficient in an early function required to produce infectious viral deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). Temperature-shift experiments and analysis of SV40 viral DNA replication by gel electrophoresis have provided strong evidence that the ts gene product of the three mutants is directly required to initiate each new round of viral DNA replication but is not required to complete a cycle which has already begun. The synthesis of mutant DNA molecules themselves can be initiated by a nonmutant gene product in viral complementation studies at 41 C. The cell, however, cannot substitute a host function to provide the initiator required for the replication of free viral DNA. The viral initiator is also required to establish the stable transformation of 3T3 cells.     

Simian virus 40 gene A regulation of cellular DNA synthesis. I. In permissive cells.

The kinetics of host cellular DNA stimulation by simian virus 40 (SV40) tsA58 infection was studied by flow microfluorometry and autoradiography in two types of productively infected monkey kidney cells (AGMK, secondary passage, and the TC-7 cell line). Prior to infection, the cell populations were maintained predominantly in G0-G1 hase of the cell cycle by low (0.25%) serum concentration. Infection of TC-7 or AGMK cells by wild-type SV40, viable deletion mutant dl890, or by SV40 tsA58 at 33 degrees C induced cells through S phase after which they were blocked with a 4N DNA content in the G2 phase. The infection of TC-7 cells by tsA58 at 41 degrees C, which was a nonpermissive temperature for viral DNA replication, induced a round of cell DNA synthesis in approximately 30% of the cell population. These cells proceeded through S phase but then re-entered the G1 resting state. In contrast, infection of AGMK cells by tsA58 at 41 degrees C induced DNA synthesis in approximately 50% of the cells, but this population remained blocked in the G2 phase. These results indicate that the mitogenic effect of the A gene product upon cellular DNA is more heat resistant than its regulating activity on viral DNA synthesis and that the extent of induction of cell DNA synthesis by the A gene product may be influenced by the host cell.     

Mutation of the putative nucleotide binding site of the Bacillus subtilis membrane protein ComFA abolishes the uptake of DNA during transformation.

ComFA is a membrane protein required for the uptake of transforming DNA following its binding to the Bacillus subtilis competent-cell surface. ComFA, which resembles members of the DEAD family of ATP-driven helicases, contains sequences similar to those found in many ATP-binding proteins and thought to represent the ATP-binding sites of these proteins. We have suggested that ComFA may function as a DNA translocase and/or helicase, using the energy of ATP hydrolysis to mediate the uptake of DNA. As a partial test of this hypothesis, we have introduced mutations into highly conserved glycyl and lysyl residues of the putative ATP-binding site, located, respectively, at positions 151 and 152, and determined the effects of these alterations on in vivo function. A substitution of the conserved lysyl by a glutamyl residue (K152E) and a double G151R-K152N mutation each resulted in a nearly 1,000-fold decrease in transformability, equivalent to that observed in a ComFA null mutant. A K152N mutation caused a partial loss-of-function phenotype. These effects were manifested at the level of DNA uptake; no marked effects on the final levels of DNA binding were noted. When either the K152E mutant allele or the G151R-K152N double mutant allele was combined in single copy with wild-type comFA, a dominant negative phenotype expressed on the level of DNA uptake was observed, suggesting that ComFA acts in a complex with other proteins, with additional molecules of ComFA, or with both.     

Simian virus 40 gene A function and maintenance of transformation.

Transformants have been isolated after infection of rat embryo cells at 33 C with either wild-type simian virus 40 or with the temperature-sensitive gene A mutants, tsA7 and tsA28. Examination of properties usually associated with transformation such as growth in 1% serum, growth rate, saturation density, and morphology show that these properties are temperature dependent in the tsA transformants characterized, but are not temperature dependent in the wild-type transformants that have been examined. In the most thoroughly characterized tsA transformants the expression of T antigen also appears to be temperature dependent. These data suggest that an active A function is required for the maintenance of transformation in these cells. In the lytic cycle, the A function is involved in the initiation of DNA synthesis. Thus transformation by simian virus 40 may be the direct consequence of the introduction of the simian virus 40 replicon and the presence of its DNA initiator function, which causes the cell to express a transformed phenotype.     

Cell growth and differentiation in vitro in mouse macrophages transformed by a tsA mutant of simian virus 40. I. Cellular response in proliferative and phagocytic activities to the shift of temperature differs depending on the culture state in mouse bone marrow cells transformed by the tsA640 mutant of simian virus 40

It was shown previously that mouse bone marrow cells transformed by simian virus 40 (SV40) show a reversible cell density-dependent phenotypic transition between the nonmacrophage (rapidly growing) and the macrophage (stationary) states; cells in low-density cultures are in the growing phase, express SV40 T antigen strongly as revealed by immunofluorescence, and lose typical macrophage properties such as immune phagocytosis; whereas cells in high-density cultures are in the stationary (nongrowing) phase, express SV40 T antigen weakly, and recover their macrophage properties (Takayama, 1980). In the hope of clarifying the relationship between T antigen, cell growth, and macrophage-specific cellular function, we examined the behavior at 33 and 39 degrees C of mouse bone marrow cells transformed by an SV40 gene A mutant (tsA640) whose mutation renders the molecular weight of 90K (large) T antigen temperature sensitive. The results presented in this paper suggest that functional large T antigen is required for cells in the stationary phase to initiate multiplication when transferred at lower density and is not necessary for a majority of them to maintain the nongrowing state (viability) at both high and lower cell densities, whereas it is required for cells in the growing phase to keep multiplying without losing their viability. The results also suggest that the functional large T antigen does not play a direct role in maintaining the cells as either phagocytic or nonphagocytic. It is also suggested that the physiological or tsA mutation-mediated arrest of growth may or may not be accompanied by induction and/or maintenance of cellular phagocytic activity depending on the culture state.     

Transformation of BALB/c-3T3 cells by tsA mutants of simian virus 40: temperature sensitivity of the transformed phenotype and retransofrmation by wild-type virus.

The function of the A gene of simian virus 40 (SV40) in transformation of BALB/c-3T3 cells was investigated by infecting at the permissive temperature with wild-type SV40 and with six tsA mutants whose mutation sites map at different positions in the early region of the SV40 genome. Cloned transformants were then characterized as to the temperature sensitivity of the transformed phenotype. Of 16 tsA transformants, 15 were temperature sensitive for the ability to overgrow a monolayer of normal cells, whereas three of three wild-type transformants were not. This pattern of temperature sensitivity of the transformed phenotype was also observed when selected clones were assessed for the ability to grow in soft agar and in medium containing low concentration of serum. The temperature resistance of the one exceptional tsA transformant could be attributed neither to the location of the mutation site in the transforming virus nor to transformation by a revertant virus. This temperature-resistant tsA transformant, however, was demonstrated to contain a higher intracellular concentration of SV40 T antigen than a temperature-sensitive line transformed by the same tsA mutant. A tsA transformant displaying the untransformed phenotype at the nonpermissive temperature was found to be susceptible to retransformation by wild-type virus at this temperature, demonstrating that the temperature sensitivity of the tsA transformants is due to the viral mutation and not to a cellular defect. These results indicate that continuous expression of the product of the SV40 A gene is required to maintain the transformed phenotype in BALB/c-3T3 cells.     

Characterization of a new simian virus 40 mutant, tsA3900, isolated from deletion mutant tsA1499.

The simian virus 40 (SV40) mutant tsA1499 contains an 81-base-pair deletion in the region of A gene encoding the C-terminal portion of the large T antigen. This mutant is particularly interesting, since it is a temperature-sensitive mutant that is apparently able to separate the lytic growth and transforming functions of the SV40 large T antigen at 38.5 degrees C. We report the isolation of a tsA1499 revertant (tsA1499-Rev) which is no longer temperature sensitive for lytic growth but still contains the 81-base-pair deletion of tsA1499. Marker rescue experiments with tsA1499-Rev or wild-type strain 830 (wt830) DNAs revealed that the original tsA1499 mutant contained a second mutation within the HindIII-Fnu4HI restriction fragment between 0.425 and 0.484 map units. Sequencing of this DNA fragment from the tsA1499, tsA1499-Rev, and wt830 viruses revealed that tsA1499 contained a single-base transversion (C to G) at 0.455 map units (nucleotide 4261). This transversion resulted in the creation of a new RsaI cleavage site in the tsA1499 DNA and predicts an arginine-to-threonine substitution at amino acid position 186 in the mutant large T antigen. The DNA sequence of the tsA1499-Rev HindIII-Fnu4HI fragment was identical to that of wt830. To determine whether tsA1499 was temperature sensitive for lytic growth solely as a result of the newly discovered point mutation or because of a combination of the point and deletion mutations, a series of viruses were constructed which contained the point mutation, the deletion mutation, both mutations, or neither. This was done by ligating the PstI A and B DNA fragments from either tsA1499 or wt830 and transfecting the ligated DNA into BSC-1H monkey kidney cells. This experiment revealed that all viruses containing the point mutation (the tsA1499 PstI A DNA fragment) were temperature sensitive for lytic growth, regardless of the presence of the 81-base-pair deletion (the tsA1499 PstI B DNA fragment). This newly discovered point mutation, at nucleotide 4261, is therefore unique, since to our knowledge it is the first tsA mutation to be described in the 0.455-map-unit region of the SV40 genome. We then tested the effect of this unique mutation on the ability of the SV40 virus to transform cultured rat cells to anchorage independence.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

A possible role for cyclins in the zinc requirements during G1 and G2 phases of the cell cycle

Zinc has been shown to be required for the passage of cells through the mid-G1 phase of the cell cycle and for differentiation of myoblasts. However, it has been suggested that zinc has other roles during the cell cycle. The experiments reported here indicate that readily available zinc is not required for DNA synthesis per se but is needed for a process contemporaneous with the S phase and required for subsequent progress of the cells through G2 and mitosis. The G1 and S/G2 requirements for zinc showed virtually identical sensitivities to zinc deprivation. Each of the above requirements for zinc coincides with the induction of specific cyclin mRNAs, and the concentrations of these mRNAs have now been shown to decrease in the absence of adequate zinc. This is the first study to indicate a possible common factor underlying the requirement for available zinc during both cell replication and differentiation.     

A Thr357 to Ser polymorphism in homozygous and compound heterozygous subjects causes absent or reduced P2X7 function and impairs ATP-induced mycobacterial killing by macrophages

The P2X(7) receptor is a ligand-gated cation channel that is highly expressed on mononuclear leukocytes and that mediates ATP-induced apoptosis and killing of intracellular pathogens. There is a wide variation in P2X(7) receptor function between subjects, explained in part by four loss-of-function polymorphisms (R307Q, E496A, I568N, and a 5'-intronic splice site polymorphism), as well as rare mutations. In this study, we report the allele frequencies of 11 non-synonymous P2X(7) polymorphisms and describe a fifth loss-of-function polymorphism in the gene (1096C --> G), which changes Thr(357) to Ser (T357S) with an allele frequency of 0.08 in the Caucasian population. P2X(7) function was measured by ATP-induced ethidium(+) influx into peripheral blood lymphocytes and monocytes and, when compared with wild-type subjects, was reduced to 10-65% in heterozygotes, 1-18% in homozygotes, and 0-10% in compound heterozygotes carrying T357S and a second loss-of-function polymorphism. Overexpression of the T357S mutant P2X(7) in either HEK-293 cells or Xenopus oocytes gave P2X(7) function of approximately 50% that of wild-type constructs. Differentiation of monocytes to macrophages, which also up-regulates P2X(7), restored P2X(7) function to near normal in cells heterozygous for T357S and to a value 50-65% of wild-type in cells homozygous for T357S or compound heterozygous for T357S/E496A. However, macrophages from subjects that are compound heterozygous for either T357S/R307Q or T357S/stop codon had near-to-absent P2X(7) function. These functional deficits induced by T357S were paralleled by impaired ATP-induced apoptosis and mycobacteria killing in macrophages from these subjects. Lymphocytes, monocytes, and macrophages from subjects homozygous for T357S or compound heterozygous for T357S and a second loss-of-function allele have reduced or absent P2X(7) receptor function.     

Avian reovirus temperature-sensitive mutant tsA12 has a lesion in major core protein sigmaA and is defective in assembly

Members of our laboratory previously generated and described a set of avian reovirus (ARV) temperature-sensitive (ts) mutants and assigned 11 of them to 7 of the 10 expected recombination groups, named A through G (M. Patrick, R. Duncan, and K. M. Coombs, Virology 284:113-122, 2001). This report presents a more detailed analysis of two of these mutants (tsA12 and tsA146), which were previously assigned to recombination group A. The capacities of tsA12 and tsA146 to replicate at a variety of temperatures were determined. Morphological analyses indicated that cells infected with tsA12 at a nonpermissive temperature produced approximately 100-fold fewer particles than cells infected at a permissive temperature and accumulated core particles. Cells infected with tsA146 at a nonpermissive temperature also produced approximately 100-fold fewer particles, a larger proportion of which were intact virions. We crossed tsA12 with ARV strain 176 to generate reassortant clones and used them to map the temperature-sensitive lesion in tsA12 to the S2 gene. S2 encodes the major core protein sigmaA. Sequence analysis of the tsA12 S2 gene showed a single alteration, a cytosine-to-uracil transition, at nucleotide position 488. This alteration leads to a predicted amino acid change from proline to leucine at amino acid position 158 in the sigmaA protein. An analysis of the core crystal structure of the closely related mammalian reovirus suggested that the Leu(158) substitution in ARV sigmaA lies directly under the outer face of the sigmaA protein. This may cause a perturbation in sigmaA such that outer capsid proteins are incapable of condensing onto nascent cores. Thus, the ARV tsA12 mutant represents a novel assembly-defective orthoreovirus clone that may prove useful for delineating virus assembly.     

Separation of lytic and transforming functions of the simian virus 40 A region: two mutants which are temperature sensitive for lytic functions have opposite effects on transformation.

Thirty-six of 40 rat cell clones transformed to anchorage independence at low multiplicity of infection by simian virus 40 tsA58 were heat sensitive for continued expression of the transformed phenotype. tsA1499 is an 81-base-pair deletion at 21 map units which is like tsA58 in that it is also heat sensitive for lytic growth, belongs to the A complementation group, and produces rat cell transformants which contain a thermolabile T antigen. Unlike tsA58, however, tsA1499 generated rat cell transformants efficiently at the temperature at which it was lytically defective, and 10 of 17 clones transformed by tsA1499 were cold rather than heat sensitive for the continued maintenance of the transformed phenotype. The lytic and transforming activities of the A region thus appeared to function independently in mutant tsA1499.     

Induction of fibronectin expression, actin cable formation, and entry into S phase following reexpression of T antigen in mouse macrophages transformed by the tsA640 mutant of SV40

Mouse macrophages transformed by a temperature-sensitive mutant (tsA640) of simian virus 40 (SV40) were examined by immunofluorescence microscopy for fibronectin expression and actin distribution. Resting cultures of tsA640 transformants incubated at a temperature nonpermissive for SV40 large T antigen (39.0 degrees C) exhibited phagocytic activity and did not exhibit cellular fibronectin and actin cables, like primary cultures of resident macrophages. When the resting cultures were sparsely seeded and shifted down to the permissive temperature of 33.0 degrees C, expression of large T antigen in the nucleus, expression of fibronectin in the cytoplasm, and cellular entry into S phase occurred in that temporal order, followed by actin cable formation, cellular proliferation, and diminishment of phagocytic activity. The expression of T antigen and fibronectin was sensitive to actinomycin D and cycloheximide. The expression of fibronectin was insensitive to inhibitors of DNA synthesis, whereas the expression of actin cables was sensitive. These results suggest that SV40 T antigen leads macrophages to express fibronectin and actin cables, as well as resumption of cell proliferation, and that entry into S phase is not required for fibronectin expression but may be required for actin cable formation.     

A conformationally sensitive residue on the cytoplasmic surface of serotonin transporter

Serotonin transporter (SERT) contains a single reactive external cysteine residue at position 109 (Chen, J. G., Liu-Chen, S., and Rudnick, G. (1997) Biochemistry 36, 1479-1486) and seven predicted cytoplasmic cysteines. A mutant of rat SERT (X8C) in which those eight cysteine residues were replaced by other amino acids retained approximately 32% of wild type transport activity and approximately 56% of wild type binding activity. In contrast to wild-type SERT or the C109A mutant, X8C was resistant to inhibition of high affinity cocaine analog binding by the cysteine reagent 2-(aminoethyl)methanethiosulfonate hydrobromide (MTSEA) in membrane preparations from transfected cells. Each predicted cytoplasmic cysteine residue was reintroduced, one at a time, into the X8C template. Reintroduction of Cys-357, located in the third intracellular loop, restored MTSEA sensitivity similar to that of C109A. Replacement of only Cys-109 and Cys-357 was sufficient to prevent MTSEA sensitivity. Thus, Cys-357 was the sole cytoplasmic determinant of MTSEA sensitivity in SERT. Both serotonin and cocaine protected SERT from inactivation by MTSEA at Cys-357. This protection was apparently mediated through a conformational change following ligand binding. Although both ligands bind in the absence of Na(+) and at 4 degrees C, their ability to protect Cys-357 required Na(+) and was prevented at 4 degrees C. The accessibility of Cys-357 to MTSEA inactivation was increased by monovalent cations. The K(+) ion, which is believed to serve as a countertransport substrate for SERT, was the most effective ion for increasing Cys-357 reactivity.     

Control of simian virus 40 gene expression at the levels of RNA synthesis and processing: thermally induced changes in the ratio of the simian virus 40 early mRNA''s and proteins

Examination of the simian virus 40 early mRNA's from infected AGMK or CV-1 cells showed that the ratio of large T- to small t-antigen mRNA's increased with an increased incubation temperature. In tsA58 mutant-infected cells, an increased incubation temperature resulted in the overproduction of early RNAs'; however, the ratio of the early mRNA's was the same, at any temperature, in both wild-type- and tsA58-infected cells. Thus, the thermally induced alteration in the early mRNA ratios was apparently not affected by the tsA mutation or by the overproduction of early RNA in tsA mutant-infected cells. Time course studies at various temperatures showed that, although the ratio of large T- to small t-antigen mRNA's increased with temperature, at any one temperature it was consistent from early to late times of infection. Furthermore, the ratio of the early mRNA's adjusted in temperature shift experiments. Thus, the ratio of the early mRNA's appeared to be intrinsic to the thermodynamic environment of the cell. The thermally induced alterations in the early mRNA's were reflected at the protein level by parallel changes in the ratio of large T- to small t-antigens. These data suggest a level of gene expression control which may function at the stage of splicing.     

Functional characterization of temperature-sensitive mutants of simian virus 40 large T antigen.

We investigated the molecular properties of eight temperature-sensitive mutants of simian virus 40 large T antigen (tsA mutants). The mutants have single amino acid substitutions that block DNA replication at 39 to 41 degrees C in vivo. In vitro, five of the mutant proteins were highly sensitive to a brief heat shock at 39 degrees C, while the three remaining proteins were only partially sensitive at 41 degrees C. We characterized the five most defective mutant proteins, using a variety of biochemical assays for replication functions of T antigen. Heat shock of purified T antigen with a mutation at amino acid 422 significantly impaired the oligomerization, origin-binding, origin-unwinding, ATPase, and helicase functions of T antigen. In contrast, substitution of amino acid 186, 357, 427, or 438 had more selective, temperature-sensitive effects on T-antigen functions. Our findings are consistent with the conclusion that T antigen functions via a hierarchy of interrelated domains. Only the ATPase activity remained intact in the absence of all other functions. Hexamer formation appears to be necessary for core origin-unwinding and helicase activities; the helicase function also requires ATPase activity. All five tsA mutants were impaired in functions important for the initiation of DNA replication, but three mutants retained significant elongation functions.     

A development-specific protein in Myxococcus xanthus is associated with the extracellular fibrils.

We have been using monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) as probes to study developmentally relevant cell surface antigens (CSA) that may be required for cellular interactions in Myxococcus xanthus. Three independently isolated MAbs, G69, G357, and G645, isolated by Gill and Dworkin recognize a CSA detectable only on developing cells (J. S. Gill and M. Dworkin, J. Bacteriol. 168:505-511, 1986). The CSA is made within the first 30 min of submerged development and increases until myxosporulation. The CSA is also produced at low levels after 24 h in shaken-starved cultures and during glycerol sporulation. No antigen can be detected in lysed, vegetative cells, and expression of the antigen is blocked in the presence of rifampin or chloramphenicol. The antigen is expressed in submerged, developmental cultures of asg, bsg, csg, dsg, and mgl mutants and is not expressed in a dsp mutant. All of the three MAbs immunoprecipitate the same protein of approximately 97,000 Da from lysed developmental cells. Competitive immunoprecipitations suggest that they recognize at least two different epitopes on the CSA. The epitopes recognized by MAbs G69, G357, and G645 are sensitive to protease digestion, whereas the epitopes recognized by MAbs G357 and G645 are resistant to periodate oxidation. The epitope recognized by MAb G69 is sensitive to periodate oxidation. Fractionation of lysed developing cells shows that most of the antigen is localized in the pellet after centrifugation at 100,000 x g. To determine whether the antigen is expressed on the cell surface, we labeled developing whole cells with either MAb G69, G357, or G645 and gold-labeled anti-mouse immunoglobulin G. Low-voltage scanning electron microscopy of labeled cells shows that the antigen is associated with the fibrillar matrix that surrounds the cells and that the antigen is retained on isolated, developmental fibrils from M. xanthus. The CSA has been designated dFA-1, for developmental fibrillar antigen 1.     

A simian virus 40 dl884/tsA58 double mutant is temperature sensitive for abortive transformation

We have constructed a dl884/tsA58 double mutant and a t+T- early-region deletion mutant and have used these mutants to study the roles of the simian virus 40 tumor antigens (T and t) in transformation. Our major conclusions are that (i) although the mutant tsA58 is not temperature sensitive for the maintenance of transformation, the dl884/tsA58 double mutant is; (ii) small t antigen can provide at least one, but not all, of the functions required for the maintenance of transformation; and (iii) at least two different functions are required for the maintenance of simian virus 40 transformation.