Ets-1 p51 and p42 isoforms differentially modulate Stromelysin-1 promoter according to induced DNA bend orientation

The Stromelysin-1 gene promoter contains a palindrome of two Ets-binding sites (EBS) that bind the p51 and p42 isoforms of the human Ets-1-transcription factor. A previous study established that full gene transactivation is associated with a ternary complex consisting of two p51 bound to the two EBS on the promoter. p42, only able to bind one of the two EBS, induces only very weak activity. Here, we investigate the mechanism by which the Stromelysin-1 promoter discriminates between p51 and p42. The differential stoichiometry of the two Ets-1 isoforms arises from the Stromelysin-1 EBS palindrome. The ternary complex requires the presence of two inhibitory domains flanking the DNA-binding domain and the ability to form an intramolecular autoinhibition module. Most importantly, the p51-ternary and the p42-binary complexes induce DNA curvatures with opposite orientations. These results establish that differential DNA bending, via p51 and p42 differential binding, is correlated with the Stromelysin-1 promoter activation process

Interleukin-1 or phorbol induction of the stromelysin promoter requires an element that cooperates with AP-1.

Interleukin-1, a mediator of inflammation, or tumor promoting phorbol esters induce transcription of stromelysin, a metalloproteinase that degrades extracellular matrix molecules and that is overexpressed in diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. Sequences required for induction of transcription of the human stromelysin promoter are contained on a 46 base pair fragment. This fragment contains a sequence with a high degree of similarity to the binding site for the transcription factor activator protein-1 (AP-1) and indeed, the AP-1 sequence of this fragment is necessary but not sufficient for the maximal response to phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (phorbol) or interleukin-1. Maximal induction requires functional cooperation between the AP-1 sequence and a neighboring upstream regulatory sequence (URS) of the stromelysin promoter which is also necessary but not sufficient. We demonstrate that both the AP-1 sequence and the URS bind phorbol or interleukin-1 induced nuclear proteins. Cooperation of the AP-1 sequence with another sequence present in the stromelysin promoter may be a general mechanism whereby the AP-1 element, which is found in many promoters, achieves a maximal and specific response to various stimuli

Solution structure of the A loop of 23S ribosomal RNA

The A loop is an essential RNA component of the ribosome peptidyltransferase center that directly interacts with aminoacyl (A)-site tRNA. The A loop is highly conserved and contains a ubiquitous 2′-O-methyl ribose modification at position U2552. Here, we present the solution structure of a modified and unmodified A-loop RNA to define both the A-loop fold and the structural impact of the U2552 modification. Solution data reveal that the A-loop RNA has a compact structure that includes a noncanonical base pair between C2556 and U2552. NMR evidence is presented that the N3 position of C2556 has a shifted pKa and that protonation at C2556-N3 changes the C-U pair geometry. Our data indicate that U2552 methylation modifies the A-loop fold, in particular the dynamics and position of residues C2556 and U2555. We compare our structural data with the structure of the A loop observed in a recent 50S crystal structure [Ban, N., Nissen, P., Hansen, J., Moore, P. B. & Steitz, T. A. (2000) Science 289, 905–920; Nissen, P., Hansen, J., Ban, N., Moore, P. B. & Steitz, T. A. (2000) Science 289, 920–930]. The solution and crystal structures of the A loop are dramatically different, suggesting that a structural rearrangement of the A loop must occur on docking into the peptidyltransferase center. Possible roles of this docking event, the shifted pKa of C2556 and the U2552 2′-O-methylation in the mechanism of translation, are discussed