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Transcription of the mouse immunoglobulin kappa gene is controlled by two enhancers: the intronic enhancer (Ei) that occurs between the joining (J kappa) and constant (C kappa) exons and the 3' enhancer (E3') located 8.5 kb downstream of the gene. To understand the role of E3' in the activation of the mouse immunoglobulin kappa gene, we studied its chromatin structure in cultured B-cell lines arrested at various stages of differentiation. We found that 120 bp of the enhancer's transcriptional core becomes DNase I hypersensitive early in B-cell development. Genomic footprinting of pro-B and pre-B cells localized this chromatin alteration to B-cell-specific protections at the region including the direct repeat (DR) and the sequence downstream of the DR (DS), the PU.1-NFEM-5 site, and the core's E-box motif, identifying bound transcription factors prior to kappa gene rearrangement. Early footprints were, however, not detected at downstream sites proposed to play a negative role in transcription. The early chromatin structure persisted through the mature B-cell stage but underwent a dramatic shift in plasma cells, correlating with the loss of guanosine protection within the DR-DS junction and the appearance of novel footprints at a GC-rich motif upstream and the NF-E1 (YY1/delta)-binding site downstream. Gel shift analysis demonstrated that the DR-DS junction is bound by a factor with properties similar to those of BSAP (B-cell-specific activator protein). These results reveal developmental-stage-specific changes in the composition of nuclear factors bound to E3', clarify the role of factors that bind constitutively in vitro, and point to the differentiation of mature B cells to plasma cells as an important transitional point in the function of this enhancer. The observed changes in nuclear factor composition were accompanied by the rearrangement of positioned nucleosomes that flank the core region, suggesting a role for both nuclear factors and chromatin structure in modulating kappa E3' function during B-cell development. The functional implications of the observed chromatin alterations are discussed in the context of recent studies on kappa E3' and the factors that bind to it.

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Previous studies have located transcriptional enhancer elements within both the intron and 3'-region of the mouse kappa immunoglobulin gene. Here we address the role of these two enhancers in specifying gene activity and specific chromatin structures. MOPC41 kappa gene constructs, either intact or containing deletions of one or both enhancers, were introduced into S194 mouse plasmacytoma cells for transient and stable expression studies. Transient expression assays revealed that the basal level expression exhibited by enhancerless constructs was activated 100-200-fold by the two enhancers together in a synergistic fashion. A similar trend was observed when both enhancers were present in stably integrated constructs, although the synergy was less pronounced. Analysis of DNase I hypersensitive sites in the chromatin revealed that stably integrated constructs established hypersensitive sites about the enhancer sequences. These sites demonstrated the same nuclease susceptibility as those associated with the endogenous gene(s), and their establishment was independent of the presence of the other enhancer. Thus, although both enhancers are required for maximal gene expression, the elements act independently in determining specific chromatin structures.

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Over the past decade, the results of numerous indirect mappings analyses have not clarified whether or not nucleosomes occupy preferred positions in simian virus 40 (SV40) chromatin. To address this question more directly, we followed a shotgun cloning approach and determined the nucleotide sequences of over 400 cloned nucleosomal DNA fragments obtained from digestion of SV40 chromatin with micrococcal nuclease. Our results demonstrate and establish that nucleosomes do not occupy unique positions in SV40 minichromosomes and thus indicate the existence of at least several types of chromatin molecules having different nucleosome organization patterns. We developed two types of statistical analysis in order to examine the cloning data in greater detail. One type, overlap analysis, revealed the distribution of the cloned fragments with respect to SV40 DNA. The distribution exhibits an oscillating pattern, dividing the genome into regions of weak or strong nucleosome density. The other analysis determined the distribution of the midpoints of the cloned fragments and revealed potential strong and weak nucleosome location sites, and an early versus late distinction in organization of nucleosomes in SV40 chromatin. The late region appears to contain more strong nucleosome location sites (8) than the early region (4). The strongest nucleosome abuts the late side of the nuclease-hypersensitive region and includes the major transcription initiation site of the late genes. Another strong site precedes this nucleosome and includes sequences implicated in controlling the expression of the SV40 early and late genes. A strong or weak nucleosome location site is not apparent near the early side of the nucleosome-hypersensitive region. Only weak and overlapping nucleosome location sites are found in the region where replication terminates in the SV40 minichromosomes.

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Rearranged MOPC41 immunoglobulin kappa gene constructs have been stably introduced into cultured S194 mouse plasmacytoma cells to investigate the effects of deleting the intronic enhancer and/or matrix association region (MAR) on gene expression. Intact single-copy kappa genes containing 1.5 kilobase pairs of upstream and 8.5 kilobase pairs of downstream flanking sequences exhibited sensitivity to chromosome position effects and were expressed at a mean level of 27% relative to the endogenous kappa gene expression or only 6% with respect to the MOPC41 kappa mRNA levels in the tumor. Deletion of the intronic MAR led to a 4-fold decrease in expression, while deletion of both the MAR and enhancer led to an 11-fold decline. These effects were dampened by preselecting for integration into a transcriptionally poised chromatin location as demonstrated by linkage to a selectable marker which lacked both a MAR and an enhancer. Significantly, we found that sequences downstream of the poly(A) addition site compensated 150-fold for deletion of the intronic enhancer.

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MOPC41 immunoglobulin kappa gene constructs have been stably introduced into the mouse germ line to investigate the effects of deleting the conserved intronic sequences on gene expression. Intact kappa genes containing 1.5 kilobase pairs of upstream and 8.5 kilobase pairs of downstream flanking sequences were highly expressed tissue-specifically, raising the total level of kappa mRNA in spleens severalfold in most transgenic animals. This high expression was often accompanied by marked suppression of endogenous kappa gene activity. Transgenes containing a deletion of the matrix association region (MAR) or both the MAR and enhancer were expressed tissue-specifically at mean levels only 2- and 3-fold lower, respectively, than that of intact transgenes. Therefore, while the intronic enhancer and MAR appear to play a quantitative role in gene expression, these sequences are not absolutely essential for transcriptional activation of rearranged kappa genes in a normal developmental environment.

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A family of A + T-rich sequences termed MARs ("matrix association regions") mediate chromosomal loop attachment. Here we demonstrate that several MARs both specifically bind and contain multiple sites of cleavage by topoisomerase II, a major protein of the mitotic chromosomal scaffold. Interestingly, "hotspots" of enzyme cutting occur within the MAR of the mouse immunoglobulin kappa-chain gene at the breakpoint of a previously described chromosomal translocation. Since topoisomerase II can mediate illegitimate recombination in prokaryotes, we explored further the possibility that MARs might be targets for this process in eukaryotes. We found that a MAR had been deleted from one of the two rabbit immunoglobulin kappa-chain genes and that MARs reside next to a long interspersed repetitive element within the recombination junction of a human ring chromosome 21. These results, taken together with other accounts of nonhomologous recombination, lead to the proposal that a dysfunction of MARs is illegitimate recombination.

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We have recently identified an evolutionarily conserved class of sequences that organize chromosomal loops in the interphase nucleus, which we have termed "matrix association regions" (MARs). MARs are about 200 bp long, AT-rich, contain topoisomerase II consensus sequences and other AT-rich sequence motifs, often reside near cis-acting regulatory sequences, and their binding sites are abundant (greater than 10,000 per mammalian nucleus). Here we demonstrate that the interactions between the mouse kappa immunoglobulin gene MAR and topoisomerase II or the "nuclear matrix" occur between multiple and sometimes overlapping binding sites. Interestingly, the sites most susceptible to topoisomerase II cleavage are localized near the breakpoints of a previously described illegitimate recombination event. The presence of multiple binding sites within single MARs may allow DNA and RNA polymerase passage without disrupting primary loop organization.

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We have investigated the average nucleosome spacing in the chromatin from several simian virus 40 virion assembly mutants temperature-sensitive in the major capsid protein VP1. Viral assembly intermediates that accumulate in cells infected with mutants that block virion assembly at the propagation step (tsB) have an average nucleosome repeat length similar to that of wild-type SV40 chromatin, approximately 198(+/- 4) base-pairs. This repeat length is longer than that of the host (BSC-40) cellular chromatin, which has a value of 187(+/- 4) base-pairs. In contrast, SV40 chromatin from cells infected with virus containing a mutation that blocks virion assembly at the initiation step (tsC) has a significantly shorter average repeat length of 177(+/- 4) base-pairs. At the permissive temperature (33 degrees C), tsC chromatin has a nucleosome spacing periodicity essentially the same as that of wild-type SV40 chromatin. In addition to possessing a chromatin structure with nucleosomes that are, on the average, closer together, tsC chromatin contains a nuclease-hypersensitive or open region in nearly all molecules, but apparently the same number of nucleosomes. These findings suggest that nucleosomes are deposited initially on newly replicated SV40 chromatin in such a way as to leave the DNA region containing the origin of replication and transcription enhancers uncovered. Subsequent interaction with capsid proteins appears to increase the average nucleosome spacing and consequently to cover the open region for encapsidation.

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The initiation of simian virus 40 assembly is blocked at the nonpermissive temperature in cells infected with the viral capsid protein VP1 mutant tsC219. Greater than 95% of the minichromosomes isolated from these cells are accessible to cleavage by Bgl I and Sph I, which recognize the sequences near the viral replication origin and in the transcription enhancer elements, respectively. The accessibility of the Ori region to Bgl I is considerably reduced when virion assembly is allowed to proceed in tsC219-infected cells at the permissive temperature. A reduced accessibility to Bgl I is also observed for chromatin isolated from cells infected with wt776, the wild-type parental strain of tsC219. For wt776 chromatin, variability to Bgl I sensitivity is observed and this can be correlated to the relative virion-to-chromatin yield. A similar correlation is not apparent for restriction endonucleases that recognize sequences within the coding region of simian virus 40 chromatin. These results, considered together, indicate that, when virion assembly initiation is blocked, nucleosomes are nonrandomly arranged with respect to the viral regulatory sequences. It appears that the open regulatory region in minichromosomes is established during replication and that a protected regulatory region is generated with the onset of virion assembly.

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In 8 M CsCl, a fraction of the wild-type previrions and tsB228 nucleoprotein complexes lose their core histones but retain their capsid. These histone-depleted complexes appear in the electron microscope as a protein shell attached to supercoiled DNA. Consistent with this result, we find that in 1 M NaCl, the wild-type previrions dissociate into two populations of nucleoprotein complexes. One population sediments between 50 and 140 S and morphologically resembles the shell-DNA complexes isolated in CsCl gradients. The other population is comprised primarily of nucleoproteins which sediment at 40 S.

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It has been established that both in virions and in infected cells, the cellular core histones fold the SV40 DNA into nucleosomes to form the SV40 chromosome or chromatin. We and others have begun to examine how the capsid proteins assemble the SV40 chromatin into virions and to investigate whether these proteins interact with the encapsidated chromatin. To follow the pathway of virus assembly, we have analyzed the nucleoproteins which accumulate in cells infected with the SV40 mutants temperature-sensitive in assembly: tsC, tsBC, and tsB. (The temperature-sensitivity of these mutants result from alterations in the amino acid sequence of the major capsid protein VP1). We have found that mutants belonging to the same class accumulate similar types of nucleoproteins at the nonpermissive temperature (40 degrees C) and thus, share characteristics in common. For example, the tsC mutants accumulate only the 75 S chromatin. Both tsBC and tsB mutants produce in addition to chromatin, nucleoprotein complexes which sediment broadly from 100-160 S and contain all the three capsid proteins VP1, VP2, and VP3. These nucleoproteins can be distinguished morphologically, however. Under the electron microscope, the tsBC 100-160 S nucleoproteins appear as chromatin to which a small cluster of the capsid proteins is attached; the tsB nucleoproteins appear as partially assembled virions. In addition, we find that the 220 S virions are assembled in cells coinfected with tsB and tsC mutants at 40 degrees C, in agreement with genetic analysis. Our observations favor the hypothesis that the VP1 protein contains three discrete domains. We speculate that each domain may play a specific function in SV40 assembly. To gain more insight into VP1-VP1 interactions, we have examined the nucleoproteins which result from treatment of the mature wild-type virions with increasing concentrations of the reducing agent DTT. In the presence of as low a concentration of DTT as 0.1 mM, the virion shell can be penetrated by micrococcal nuclease, which then cleaves the viral DNA. This result indicates that some of the disulfide bonds bridging the VP1 proteins are on the virion surface.

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Under restrictive conditions, the 220 S SV40 virions are not assembled in tsB201-infected cells. Instead, a new class of SV40 DNA-containing particles is isolated in addition to the 75 S chromatin. This new class of nucleoprotein complex sediments heterogeneously between 100 to 160 S with a peak at 130 S. Under an electron microscope, these complexes appear predominantly as SV40 chromatin associated with a shell-like protein cluster. These structures resemble the wild type assembly intermediates previously observed by Coca-Prados and Hsu (Coca-Prados, N., and Hsu, M.-T. (1979) J. Virol. 31, 199-208). Like the wild type assembly intermediates, the tsB201 DNA-protein complexes are unstable in high salt. In CsCl, they yield a protein species with a density characteristic of empty shells. In 1 M NaCl, they release heterogeneous 55-110 S protein polymers which consist of the capsid proteins VP1, VP2, and VP3. Our results indicate that the tsB201 nucleoproteins consist of capsid proteins, with varying extents of polymerization, held to chromatin by electrostatic bonds. The accumulation of these nucleoproteins is consistent with a simian virus 40 morphogenetic pathway wherein the capsid proteins are added gradually to the 75 S chromatin.

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