N4 virion RNA polymerase sites of transcription initiation

Coliphage N4 virion encapsulated RNA polymerase shows a marked preference for denatured N4 DNA as a template. We show that initiation on denatured N4 virion DNA occurs with in vivo specificity. The location of the in vivo and in vitro initiation sites and the corresponding DNA sequences were determined. The N4 virion RNA polymerase promoters contain extensive sequence homology from position -18 to position 1, with a conserved GC-rich heptamer centered at -12, and two sets of short inverted repeats. We suggest that the N4 virion RNA polymerase recognizes the promoter only in a novel single-stranded form, and that the formation of the initiation complex is facilitated in vivo by supercoiling and E. coli single-stranded DNA binding protein.     

RNA polymerases B and C are more closely related to each other than to RNA polymerase A

Amino acid sequence comparison of the largest subunit of the three forms of yeast nuclear RNA polymerase disclosed six major conserved regions that are partly retained in the cognate subunits from bacteria, viral, and insect enzymes (Mémet, S., Gouy, M., Marck, C., Sentenac, A., and Buhler, J.-M. (1988) J. Biol. Chem. 263, 2830-2839). Within these conserved domains, the high sequence similarity of B220 and C160 subunits (52% identity) sets them apart from yeast enzyme A subunit A190. Parsimony analysis at the gene and protein levels suggests the existence of a transient ancestor to eukaryotic RNA polymerases B and C. These results are discussed in the light of the recent finding of class C genes containing RNA polymerase B promoter elements.     

Influenza virion RNA-dependent RNA polymerase: stimulation by guanosine and related compounds.

The activity of RNA-dependent RNA polymerase of several influenza viruses is stimulated by guanosine. Depending upon the virus strain used, the stimulation of initial reaction rate is up to 10-fold. 5'-GMP, 3',5'-cyclic GMP, and 5'-GDP show lesser stimulation effects. No other nucleosides of 5'-NMPs stimulate, but the dinucleoside monophosphates GpG and GpC show large stimulations. We present evidence that the stimulation represents preferential initiation of genome complementary RNA chains with guanosine: (i) [3-H] guanosine is incorporated specifically at the 5'terminus of RNA in polymerase reaction mixes in vitro. (ii) This incorporation reaction has several properties similar to those of the virion polymerase elongation reaction. (iii) RNA made in the stimulated reaction behaves as complementary RNA in annealing kinetic studies, as does RNA labeled with [3-H]guanosine.     

The carboxy-terminal domain of glycoprotein N of human cytomegalovirus is required for virion morphogenesis

Glycoproteins M and N (gM and gN, respectively) are among the few proteins that are conserved across the herpesvirus family. The function of the complex is largely unknown. Whereas deletion from most alphaherpesviruses has marginal effects on the replication of the respective viruses, both proteins are essential for replication of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV). We have constructed a series of mutants in gN to study the function of this protein. gN of HCMV is a type I glycoprotein containing a short carboxy-terminal domain of 14 amino acids, including two cysteine residues directly adjacent to the predicted transmembrane anchor at positions 125 and 126. Deletion of the entire carboxy-terminal domain as well as substitution with the corresponding region from alpha herpesviruses or mutations of both cysteine residues resulted in a replication-incompetent virus. Recombinant viruses containing point mutations of either cysteine residue could be generated. These viruses were profoundly defective for replication. Complex formation of the mutant gNs with gM and transport of the complex to the viral assembly compartment appeared unaltered compared to the wild type. However, in infected cells, large numbers of capsids accumulated in the cytoplasm that failed to acquire an envelope. Transiently expressed gN was shown to be modified by palmitic acid at both cysteine residues. In summary, our data suggest that the carboxy-terminal domain of gN plays a critical role in secondary envelopment of HCMV and that palmitoylation of gN appears to be essential for function in secondary envelopment of HCMV and virus replication.     

The thumb domain is not essential for the catalytic action of HoLaMa DNA polymerase

A structural and kinetic characterization of a fragment of the HoLaMa DNA polymerase is presented here. In particular, a truncated form of HoLaMa, devoid of a consistent portion of the thumb domain, was isolated and purified. This HoLaMa fragment, denoted as ΔNter-HoLaMa, is surprisingly competent in catalyzing DNA extension, albeit featuring a k_cat one order of magnitude lower than the corresponding kinetic constant of its full-length counterpart. The conformational rearrangements, if any, of enzyme tryptophanes triggered by DNA binding or extension were assayed under pre-steady-state conditions. The fluorescence of HoLaMa tryptophanes was found to significantly change upon DNA binding and extension. On the contrary, no fluorescence changes of ΔNter-HoLaMa tryptophanes were detected under the same conditions, suggesting that major conformational transitions are not required for DNA binding or extension by this truncated DNA polymerase.     

A new family of polymerases related to superfamily A DNA polymerases and T7-like DNA-dependent RNA polymerases

   

Using sequence profile methods and structural comparisons we characterize a previously unknown family of nucleic acid polymerases in a group of mobile elements from genomes of diverse bacteria, an algal plastid and certain DNA viruses, including the recently reported Sputnik virus. Using contextual information from domain architectures and gene-neighborhoods we present evidence that they are likely to possess both primase and DNA polymerase activity, comparable to the previously reported prim-pol proteins. These newly identified polymerases help in defining the minimal functional core of superfamily A DNA polymerases and related RNA polymerases. Thus, they provide a framework to understand the emergence of both DNA and RNA polymerization activity in this class of enzymes. They also provide evidence that enigmatic DNA viruses, such as Sputnik, might have emerged from mobile elements coding these polymerases.     

Specific sequences and a hairpin structure in the template strand are required for N4 virion RNA polymerase promoter recognition.

Coliphage N4 virion-encapsidated, DNA-dependent RNA polymerase (vRNAP) is inactive on double-stranded N4 DNA; however, denatured promoter-containing templates are accurately transcribed. We report that all determinants of vRNAP promoter recognition exist in the template strand, indicating that this enzyme is a site-specific, single-stranded DNA-binding protein. We show that conserved sequences and the integrity of inverted repeats present at the promoters are essential for activity, suggesting the necessity for specific secondary structure. Evidence for such a structure is presented. We propose a model for in vivo utilization of vRNAP promoters in which template negative supercoiling yields single-strandedness at the promoter to reveal the determinants of vRNAP binding. This structure is stabilized by the binding of E. coli single-stranded DNA-binding protein to yield an "activated promoter."