The DNA architectural protein HMGB1 displays two distinct modes of action that promote enhanceosome assembly

HMGB1 (also called HMG-1) is a DNA-bending protein that augments the affinity of diverse regulatory proteins for their DNA sites. Previous studies have argued for a specific interaction between HMGB1 and target proteins, which leads to cooperative binding of the complex to DNA. Here we propose a different model that emerged from studying how HMGB1 stimulates enhanceosome formation by the Epstein-Barr viral activator Rta on a target gene, BHLF-1. HMGB1 stimulates binding of individual Rta dimers to multiple sites in the enhancer. DNase I and hydroxyl radical footprinting, electrophoretic mobility shift assays, and immobilized template assays failed to reveal stable binding of HMGB1 within the complex. Furthermore, mutational analysis failed to identify a specific HMGB1 target sequence. The effect of HMGB1 on Rta could be reproduced by individual HMG domains, yeast HMO1, or bacterial HU. These results, combined with the effects of single-amino-acid substitutions within the DNA-binding surface of HMGB1 domain A, argue for a mechanism whereby DNA-binding and bending by HMGB1 stimulate Rta-DNA complex formation in the absence of direct interaction with Rta or a specific HMGB1 target sequence. The data contrast with our analysis of HMGB1 action on another BHLF-1 regulatory protein called ZEBRA. We discuss the two distinct modes of HMGB1 action on a single regulatory region and propose how HMGB1 can function in diverse contexts.