HTLV-1 is the etiological agent of adult T-cell leukemia (ATL), the neurological syndrome TSP/HAM and certain other clinical disorders. The viral Tax protein is considered to play a central role in ...the process leading to ATL. Tax modulates the expression of many viral and cellular genes through the CREB/ATF-, SRF- and NF-kappaB-associated pathways. In addition, Tax employs the CBP/p300 and p/CAF co-activators for implementing the full transcriptional activation competence of each of these pathways. Tax also affects the function of various other regulatory proteins by direct protein-protein interaction. Through these activities Tax sets the infected T-cells into continuous uncontrolled replication and destabilizes their genome by interfering with the function of telomerase and topoisomerase-I and by inhibiting DNA repair. Furthermore, Tax prevents cell cycle arrest and apoptosis that would otherwise be induced by the unrepaired DNA damage and enables, thereby, accumulation of mutations that can contribute to the leukemogenic process. Together, these capacities render Tax highly oncogenic as reflected by its ability to transform rodent fibroblasts and primary human T-cells and to induce tumors in transgenic mice. In this article we discuss these effects of Tax and their apparent contribution to the HTLV-1 associated leukemogenic process. Notably, however, shortly after infection the virus enters into a latent state, in which viral gene expression is low in most of the HTLV-1 carriers' infected T-cells and so is the level of Tax protein, although rare infected cells may still display high viral RNA. This low Tax level is evidently insufficient for exerting its multiple oncogenic effects. Therefore, we propose that the latent virus must be activated, at least temporarily, in order to elevate Tax to its effective level and that during this transient activation state the infected cells may acquire some oncogenic mutations which can enable them to further progress towards ATL even if the activated virus is re-suppressed after a while. We conclude this review by outlining an hypothetical flow of events from the initial virus infection up to the ultimate ATL development and comment on the risk factors leading to ATL development in some people and to TSP/HAM in others.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
BRCA1 is a multifunctional tumor suppressor, whose expression is activated by the estrogen (E2)-liganded ERα receptor and regulated by certain recruited transcriptional co-activators. Interference ...with BRCA1 expression and/or functions leads to high risk of breast or/and ovarian cancer. Another multifunctional protein, HTLV-1Tax oncoprotein, is widely regarded as crucial for developing adult T-cell leukemia and other clinical disorders. Tax profile reveals that it can antagonize BRCA1 expression and/or functionality. Therefore, we hypothesize that Tax expression in breast cells can sensitize them to malignant transformation by environmental carcinogens. Here we examined Tax effect on BRCA1 expression by testing its influence on E2-induced expression of BRCA1 promoter-driven luciferase reporter (BRCA1-Luc). We found that E2 strongly stimulated this reporter expression by liganding to ERα, which consequently associated with BRCA1 promoter, while ERα concomitantly recruited CBP/p300 to this complex for co-operative enhancement of BRCA1 expression. Introducing Tax into these cells strongly blocked this E2-ERα-mediated activation of BRCA1 expression. We noted, also, that Tax exerted this inhibition by binding to CBP/p300 without releasing them from their complex with ERα. Chip assay revealed that the binding of Tax to the CBP/p300-ERα complex, prevented its link to AP1 site. Interestingly, we noted that elevating the intracellular pool of CBP or p300 to excessive levels dramatically reduced the Tax-mediated inhibition of BRCA1 expression. Exploring the mechanism of this reduction revealed that the excessive co-factors were sufficient to bind separately the free Tax molecules, thus lowering their amount in the CBP/p300-ERα complex and relieving, thereby, the inhibition of BRCA1 expression.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
We have previously shown that TPA activates HTLV-1 LTR in Jurkat T-cells by inducing the binding of Sp1-p53 complex to the Sp1 site residing within the Ets responsive region 1 (ERR-1) of the LTR and ...that this activation is inhibited by PKCalpha and PKCepsilon. However, in H9 T-cells TPA has been noted to activate the LTR in two consecutive stages. The first stage is activation is mediated by PKCetta and requires the three 21 bp TRE repeats. The second activation mode resembles that of Jurkat cells, except that it is inhibited by PKCdelta. The present study revealed that the first LTR activation in H9 cells resulted from PKCetta-induced elevation of non-phosphorylated c-Jun which bound to the AP-1 site residing within each TRE. In contrast, this TRE-dependent activation did not occur in Jurkat cells, since there was no elevation of non-phosphorylated c-Jun in these cells. However, we found that PKCalpha and PKCepsilon, in Jurkat cells, and PKCetta and PKCdelta, in H9 cells, increased the level of phosphorylated c-Jun that interacted with the Sp1-p53 complex. This interaction prevented the Sp1-p53 binding to ERR-1 and blocked, thereby, the ERR-1-mediated LTR activation. Therefore, this PKC-inhibited LTR activation started in both cell types after depletion of the relevant PKCs by their downregulation. In view of these variable activating mechanisms we assume that there might be additional undiscovered yet modes of HTLV-1 LTR activation which vary in different cell types. Moreover, in line with this presumption we speculate that in HTLV-1 carriers the LTR of the latent provirus may also be reactivated by different mechanisms that vary between its different host T-lymphocyte subclones. Since this reactivation may initiate the ATL process, understanding of these mechanisms is essential for establishing strategies to block the possibility of reactivating the latent virus as preventive means for ATL development in carriers.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Adult T-cell leukemia (ATL) is caused by HTLV-I. The viral Tax oncoprotein plays a central role in initiating the process to ATL. However, after infection HTLV-1 enters into latency, during which ...virus gene expression is very low, so that the level of Tax is likely insufficient for exerting its oncogenic activities. Therefore only 5% of the infected individuals may develop ATL several decades after infection. It is assumed that the transition from latency to ATL development requires at least a temporary activation of the latent virus in order to elevate Tax to its oncogenic threshold. We have previously found that DNA damaging agents, which usually induce apoptosis, can also activate the viral LTR and that the anti-apoptosis Bcl-2 protein not only avoid their apoptosis induction but concomitantly prevents their LTR activation effect. Therefore, the present study was designed to identify the factor that while participating in the apoptotic cascade acts also to activate the viral LTR. For this purpose we employed ectopic vectors expressing these apoptotic factors together with potent shRNAs against each of them and anti caspase peptide inhibitors. We have found that in addition to its function as initiator of the mitochondrial apoptotic cascade, caspase 9 can acts also as an executer which among other non-apoptotic functions it forms an Sp1-p53 complex that activates the LTR by binding to an Sp1 recognition site residing in the LTR. This finding can help in designing effective preventing strategies against ATL development in clinically latent HTLV-1 carriers.
The oncogenic potential of HTLV-1 Tax protein is partially ascribed to its capacity to activate NF-κB. The current view is that Tax acts first in the cytoplasm to dissociate NF-κB factors from the ...IκB proteins and enable their nuclear translocation, then Tax links p65(RelA), within the nucleus, to CBP/p300 and P/CAF, which are essential for its optimal transcriptional activity. Our present study challenges the paradigm that Tax–p65(RelA)-CBP/p300 assembly occurs in the nucleus. Using Tax mutants defective for nuclear localization we show that at low levels these mutants induce the nuclear translocation of NF-κB factors but not their transcriptional activity, whereas at high levels they trap CBP and free p65(RelA) in the cytoplasm and block, thereby, their transcriptional function. In contrast, wild-type (w.t.) Tax strongly stimulated NF-κB-dependent gene expression in all tested experimental settings. These data suggest that the Tax–p65(RelA)-CBP ternary complex is established in the cytoplasm rather than in the nucleus. When this complex is formed with w.t. Tax, the entire moiety translocates into the nucleus and exerts high transcriptional activity. However, if the complex is formed with the cytoplasmic Tax mutants, the resulting moiety is retained in the cytoplasm and is, therefore, devoid of transcriptional activity.
Previous reports have shown that, in certain cell types, p21(WAF-1), which plays a central role in cell proliferation, can be activated by HTLV-I Tax protein and by TPA. Tax and TPA are also known to ...stimulate HTLV-I gene expression. Since cell proliferation has a major impact on HTLV-I replication, it was of interest to investigate their effect on p21(WAF-1) in human T cells, which are the main target of HTLV-I in human infection. This study demonstrates that p21(WAF-1) is activated in such cells by both factors, each acting through a different mechanism that does not influence the other. The effect of TPA is shown to require PKC activity. Notably, however, examination of different PKC isoforms revealed that PKC-alpha and PKC-epsilon stimulated p21(WAF-1) expression, whereas PKC-eta was rather inhibitory and PKC-beta1 and beta2 were ineffective. All these isoforms were found to be activated by TPA in the employed T cells, but this apparent paradox was resolved by the observation that when coexpressed together in these cells, the stimulatory PKCs override the inhibitory isoform. Further experiments demonstrated that the PKC-induced p21(WAF-1) activation was mediated by binding of Sp1-p53 complex to the second most upstream of the six Sp1 recognition sites present in its promoter and that this effect did not require the cooperation of an p53-binding site.
BRCA1 is a multifunctional tumor suppressor, whose expression is activated by the estrogen (E2)-liganded ERalpha receptor and regulated by certain recruited transcriptional co-activators. ...Interference with BRCA1 expression and/or functions leads to high risk of breast or/and ovarian cancer. Another multifunctional protein, HTLV-1Tax oncoprotein, is widely regarded as crucial for developing adult T-cell leukemia and other clinical disorders. Tax profile reveals that it can antagonize BRCA1 expression and/or functionality. Therefore, we hypothesize that Tax expression in breast cells can sensitize them to malignant transformation by environmental carcinogens. Here we examined Tax effect on BRCA1 expression by testing its influence on E2-induced expression of BRCA1 promoter-driven luciferase reporter (BRCA1-Luc). We found that E2 strongly stimulated this reporter expression by liganding to ERalpha, which consequently associated with BRCA1 promoter, while ERalpha concomitantly recruited CBP/p300 to this complex for co-operative enhancement of BRCA1 expression. Introducing Tax into these cells strongly blocked this E2-ERalpha-mediated activation of BRCA1 expression. We noted, also, that Tax exerted this inhibition by binding to CBP/p300 without releasing them from their complex with ERalpha. Chip assay revealed that the binding of Tax to the CBP/p300-ERalpha complex, prevented its link to AP1 site. Interestingly, we noted that elevating the intracellular pool of CBP or p300 to excessive levels dramatically reduced the Tax-mediated inhibition of BRCA1 expression. Exploring the mechanism of this reduction revealed that the excessive co-factors were sufficient to bind separately the free Tax molecules, thus lowering their amount in the CBP/p300-ERalpha complex and relieving, thereby, the inhibition of BRCA1 expression.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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