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The retrovirus integrase (IN) inserts the viral cDNA into the host DNA genome. Atomic structures of five different retrovirus INs complexed with their respective viral DNA or branched viral/target DNA substrates have indicated these intasomes are composed of IN subunits ranging from tetramers, to octamers, or to hexadecamers. IN precursors are monomers, dimers, or tetramers in solution. But how intasome assembly is controlled remains unclear. Therefore, we sought to unravel the functional mechanisms in different intasomes. We produced kinetically stabilized Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) intasomes with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 strand transfer inhibitors that interact simultaneously with IN and viral DNA within intasomes. We examined the ability of RSV IN dimers to assemble two viral DNA molecules into intasomes containing IN tetramers in contrast to one possessing IN octamers. We observed that the last 18 residues of the C terminus ("tail" region) of IN (residues 1-286) determined whether an IN tetramer or octamer assembled with viral DNA. A series of truncations of the tail region indicated that these 18 residues are critical for the assembly of an intasome containing IN octamers but not for an intasome containing IN tetramers. The C-terminally truncated IN (residues 1-269) produced an intasome that contained tetramers but failed to produce an intasome with octamers. Both intasomes have similar catalytic activities. The results suggest a high degree of plasticity for functional multimerization and reveal a critical role of the C-terminal tail region of IN in higher order oligomerization of intasomes, potentially informing future strategies to prevent retroviral integration., (© 2017 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.)

The assembly and release of retrovirus particles from the cell membrane is directed by the Gag polyprotein. The Gag protein of Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) traffics through the nucleus prior to plasma membrane localization. We previously reported that nuclear localization of RSV Gag is linked to efficient packaging of viral genomic RNA, however the intranuclear activities of RSV Gag are not well understood. To gain insight into the properties of the RSV Gag protein within the nucleus, we examined the subnuclear localization and dynamic trafficking of RSV Gag. Restriction of RSV Gag to the nucleus by mutating its nuclear export signal (NES) in the p10 domain or interfering with CRM1-mediated nuclear export of Gag by leptomycin B (LMB) treatment led to the accumulation of Gag in nucleoli and discrete nucleoplasmic foci. Retention of RSV Gag in nucleoli was reduced with cis-expression of the 5' untranslated RU5 region of the viral RNA genome, suggesting the psi (Ψ) packaging signal may alter the subnuclear localization of Gag. Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) demonstrated that the nucleolar fraction of Gag was highly mobile, indicating that there was rapid exchange with Gag proteins in the nucleoplasm. RSV Gag is targeted to nucleoli by a nucleolar localization signal (NoLS) in the NC domain, and similarly, the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) NC protein also contains an NoLS consisting of basic residues. Interestingly, co-expression of HIV-1 NC or Rev with HIV-1 Gag resulted in accumulation of Gag in nucleoli. Moreover, a subpopulation of HIV-1 Gag was detected in the nucleoli of HeLa cells stably expressing the entire HIV-1 genome in a Rev-dependent fashion. These findings suggest that the RSV and HIV-1 Gag proteins undergo nucleolar trafficking in the setting of viral infection., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The group of closely related avian sarcoma and leukosis viruses (ASLVs) evolved from a common ancestor into multiple subgroups, A to J, with differential host range among galliform species and chicken lines. These subgroups differ in variable parts of their envelope glycoproteins, the major determinants of virus interaction with specific receptor molecules. Three genetic loci, tva, tvb, and tvc, code for single membrane-spanning receptors from diverse protein families that confer susceptibility to the ASLV subgroups. The host range expansion of the ancestral virus might have been driven by gradual evolution of resistance in host cells, and the resistance alleles in all three receptor loci have been identified. Here, we characterized two alleles of the tva receptor gene with similar intronic deletions comprising the deduced branch-point signal within the first intron and leading to inefficient splicing of tva mRNA. As a result, we observed decreased susceptibility to subgroup A ASLV in vitro and in vivo. These alleles were independently found in a close-bred line of domestic chicken and Indian red jungle fowl (Gallus gallus murghi), suggesting that their prevalence might be much wider in outbred chicken breeds. We identified defective splicing to be a mechanism of resistance to ASLV and conclude that such a type of mutation could play an important role in virus-host coevolution.

All retroviruses must circumvent cellular restrictions on the export of unspliced RNAs from the nucleus. While the unspliced RNA export pathways for HIV and Mason-Pfizer monkey virus are well characterized, that of Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) is not. We have previously reported that the RSV direct repeat (DR) elements are involved in the cytoplasmic accumulation of unspliced viral RNA. Here, using fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), we demonstrate that unspliced viral RNAs bearing a single point mutation (G8863C) in the DR exhibit a restricted cellular localization in and around the nucleus. In contrast, wild type unspliced viral RNA had a diffuse localization throughout the nucleus and cytoplasm. Since the RSV Gag protein has a transient localization in the nucleus, we examined the effect of Gag over-expression on a DR-mediated reporter construct. While Gag did not enhance DR-mediated nuclear export, the dominant-negative expression of two cellular export factors, Tap and Dbp5, inhibited expression of the same reporter construct. Furthermore, FISH studies using the dominant-negative Dbp5 demonstrated that unspliced wild type RSV RNA was retained within the nucleus. Taken together, these results further implicate the DR in nuclear RNA export through interactions with Tap and Dbp5.

Increased numbers of rosettes of podosomes were observed in overgrown rat Rous sarcoma RsK4 cells. A possible role of these structures in nutrient uptake in tumour cell survival was investigated by exposure to acute starvation. A single cell suspension of RsK4 cells in Hanks balanced salt solution was allowed to interact with either clean uncoated or serum-coated for bait coverglasses. Confocal microscopy revealed contrasting 3D cell morphologies that were associated with conspicuous patterns of podosomal structures, which on the coated coverglasses resembled the sealing zones of osteoclasts, while on the uncoated coverglasses they resembled the marginal podosomes of migrating monocyte-derived cells. Thus, the arising podosomal structures, the involvement of which in an uptake of nutrients appeared feasible morphologically, were associated with the emerging 3D cell shapes guided by the microenvironment. Such phenotypic plasticity of neoplastic RsK4 cells in response to microenvironmental challenge suggested that uniqueness in cellular attributes within the neoplastic cell population could be crucial for the malignant potential.

The molecular events underlying the immediate steps of retroviral uncoating, occurring after membrane fusion and leading to the formation of an active reverse transcription complex, are not known. To better understand these processes, we have developed a cell-free system that recapitulates these early steps of retroviral replication by using avian sarcoma and leukosis virus as a model retrovirus. The substrates used in this system are viral particles that are trapped before completing membrane fusion. These virions are induced to fuse out of endosomes and the viral cores are released into solution where they are amenable to biochemical manipulation. This system revealed that membrane fusion is not sufficient to stimulate the formation of a reverse transcription complex. Instead, ATP hydrolysis and cellular factors >5 kDa in size are required. Furthermore, later steps of avian sarcoma and leukosis virus reverse transcription were stimulated by nuclear factors. The cell-free system should now allow for the definition of retroviral uncoating mechanisms and facilitate the identification and characterization of the cellular factors involved.

We studied whether acquisition of multidrug resistance (MDR) by tumor cells can alter their integrin profile and malignant behavior. Hamster fibroblast cell line HET-SR-2SC-LNM was selected for MDR, yielding the 2SC/20 subline. Compared with the parental cells, the 2SC/20 subline weakly adhered to denatured collagen (dCol) which correlated with decreased expression of alphavbeta3, a dCol receptor. Importantly, 2SC/20 subline demonstrated significantly decreased activity of collagenase MMP-2, lower ability to invade Matrigel, and attenuated metastasis in syngeneic animals. We provide evidence for the first time that selection for MDR can be associated with down-regulation of alphavbeta3 integrin, supporting our recent proof of the pro-apoptotic role of this integrin (Oncogene 20 (2001) 4710). Lack of alphavbeta3 expression may link cell survival under toxic conditions with decreased malignancy of the resulting drug resistant tumor.

We investigated the capacities of various tumor types to generate an active versus latent form of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) in its culture supernatants (SNs). Tumor cell lines were divided into three types depending on the form and magnitude of TGF-beta detected in their culture SNs: some (2 of 7 lines) generated mostly an active form (Type A); others (4 of 7) generated exclusively a latent form (Type B); and the remaining line (1 of 7) produced only marginal levels of active/latent TGF-beta (Type C). When Type A tumor cells were cultured at lower numbers, cultures failed to generate active TGF-beta. However, the addition of Type B tumor cell culture SNs containing only a latent form of TGF-beta resulted in the generation of the potent activity of active TGF-beta. This capacity was observed for another Type A tumor but not for other types (Type B and Type C). An active form of TGF-beta was detected in culture SNs of Type A tumor cells as early as 3-6 h after the addition of Type B tumor culture SNs. The emergence of an active form of TGF-beta was also observed in cultures of Type A tumor cells, the protein synthesis of which was almost completely inhibited by pretreatment with cycloheximide. Moreover, the Type B tumor SN used for the induction of active TGF-beta activity was found to contain latent TGF-beta with an apparent molecular weight of about 200,000. Type A tumor cells were also capable of generating active TGF-beta by the addition of recombinant TGF-beta of latent form with a small molecular weight (about 60,000), although the generation of active TGF-beta was much weaker after the addition of small latent TGF-beta than after the addition of large latent TGF-beta. Taken collectively, these results indicate that particular types of tumor cells have the capacity to generate an active form of TGF-beta and that such capacity can be attributed to their potential to convert TGF-beta from a latent (mainly large type) to an active form.

Tumor-derived chemotactic factors (TDCF) have been identified and thought to play a role in the regulation of macrophage infiltration in neoplastic tissues. The present study was designed to assess the in vivo relevance of the TDCF molecularly identified as monocyte chemotactic protein/JE, by investigating murine sarcoma clones expressing different levels of MCP/JE. The 1D3 clone derived from the B77 RSV-induced sarcoma expressed appreciable levels of MCP/JE mRNA and, concomitantly, chemotactic activity for mononuclear phagocytes. In contrast, the 5B11 clone from the same tumor had undetectable levels of MCP/JE transcripts and little or no chemotactic activity. The chemotactic activity of 1D3 cells was blocked by an appropriate specific antiserum. The in vitro growth rate of the 2 sarcoma lines was identical. Upon in vivo transplantation, the 1D3 clone showed a substantially higher level of tumor-associated macrophages (28.9%; range 21%-34%) than the 5B11 clone (16.6%; range 13%-20%). 5B11-induced tumors appeared earlier and grew faster than those induced by 1D3. The difference in growth rate and in macrophage infiltration between 1D3 and 5B11 clones was also evident upon transplantation into nude mice. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that TDCF, identified as MCP/JE, is one important determinant of macrophage infiltration in tumors.

The differentiation of primary myogenic cultures requires the attachment of the cells to an extracellular matrix substrate using an integrin family receptor. These integrin receptors can be phosphorylated on both their alpha and beta chains, and it has been postulated that phosphorylation regulates the receptor function. Quail myogenic clones transformed with ts-LA24A differentiated into mature myotubes following a temperature shift to nonpermissive temperature which inactivates the viral src kinas. Phosphorylation of integrin beta-1 chain and of at least one alpha chain was detected on both serine and tyrosine. An additional alpha chain(s) with a mobility similar to alpha 5 was not phosphorylated at either temperature. Following the induction of differentiation by a temperature shift, there was a marked decrease in integrin phosphorylation of both alpha and beta integrin chains. This decrease was more prominent for serine than for tyrosine, suggesting that src could not be the only kinase involved. The drop in integrin phosphorylation correlated with the initiation of differentiation, suggesting that integrin phosphorylation could be at least part of the mechanism by which myogenic differentiation is blocked by v-src.

Levels of unscheduled DNA synthesis after UV-irradiation were investigated in addition to the activities of DNA-repair enzyme uracil-DNA glycosilase in cells of both diploid (XC-D) and tetraploid (XC-T) cell cultures. It was shown that repair levels were increasing directly and proportionally to the cell ploidy.

Ten days after inoculation of sarcomatous homogenate in the leg muscle of chickens, the appearance of sarcomatous tumours was observed by electron microscopy. Viral replication and cell transformation strongly altered phospholipids and glycolipids content of the tissue: 6.12 +/- 0.23 micromoles phospholipid phosphorus/g tissue in normal tissue and 3.5 +/- 0.19 micromoles phosphorus/g tissue in sarcomatous tissue. The concentration of lipid-bound sialic acids in normal tissues was 10.5 +/- 0 nmoles/g tissue and 24.27 +/- 0.8 nmoles/g tissue in sarcomatous tissue.

Chick embryo skin fibroblasts and vertebral chondroblasts were infected with a temperature-sensitive mutant of Rous sarcoma virus, LA24A, and were grown at permissive (36 degrees C) and nonpermissive (41 degrees C) temperatures. During exponential growth, infected and parallel uninfected cultures were labeled with D-[3H]glucosamine, and newly synthesized glycosaminoglycans were identified by anion exchange chromatography and by selective enzymatic and chemical degradations. Control fibroblasts synthesized low levels of hyaluronic acid (HA), and dermatan sulfate (DS), moderate levels of heparan sulfate (HS), and high levels of chondroitin sulfate (CS). In contrast, control chondroblasts synthesized very low levels of HA and DS, no HS, and very high levels of CS. Following transformation and growth at 36 degrees C, both cell types showed a dramatic increase in HA synthesis and a significant decrease in CS synthesis. In addition, transformed chondroblasts initiated the synthesis of HS and increased their synthesis of DS to levels that matched those of transformed fibroblasts. The CS chains synthesized by control chondroblasts were partially undersulfated, while those synthesized by both normal and transformed fibroblasts were fully sulfated. Upon transformation, chondroblasts grown at 36 degrees C initiated the synthesis of fully sulfated CS chains. Most of the above biosynthetic alterations were completely reversed when infected cells were grown at 41 degrees C, indicating that they were dependent on the transforming gene product of LA24A. Clearly, the profound differences that distinguish normal fibroblasts from normal chondroblasts are lost upon transformation, and these two types of terminally differentiated cells converge toward a common, though not identical, biosynthetic program for glycosaminoglycans.

Under conditions employed in our laboratory, tumors which are induced by avian sarcoma virus (ASV) usually grow progressively for several weeks and then regress. In order to further understand the basis for tumor regression in this model, we compared avian sarcoma cells which were cultured from tumors at different stages of development in terms of various phenotypic properties. The results indicate that tumor cells which are derived from progressively-growing sarcomas are rapidly growing, produce large quantities of the enzyme plasminogen activator, and have much in common generally with chicken embryo fibroblast (CEF) cells that have been transformed by ASV. In contrast, tumor cells that are obtained from regressors have elevated levels of hexose transport, grow very slowly, are greatly enlarged and display properties that are characteristic of senescent cells in culture.

Thymidine transport was found to be increased two-fold at a permissive temperature in the cells of a normal rat kidney (NRK) line which was infected with a temperature-sensitive Rous sarcoma virus. This increase in thymidine transport was independent of cell density and coincided with the changes in cellular morphology that result from this temperature shift. A double reciprocal plot of the data demonstrated two saturable components (Km values of 60 microM and 250 microM at 39 degrees, non-permissive temperature) of the uptake of thymidine, and the drop of temperature (at 33 degrees, the permissive temperature for transformation) decreased Km to one half, but did not change Vmax. These results indicate that a qualitative alteration of thymidine transport took place in the presence of the active src gene product.

Proviral DNA from non-producer Rous sarcoma in Syrian hamster contains practically all the nucleotide sequences presented in 125I-labeled RNA from Rous sarcoma virus, Carr-Zilber strain. Virus-specific sequences consist of moderately reiterated and unique DNA regions. The amount of Rous sarcoma virus-specific provirus equivalents in hamster Rous sarcoma DNA is equal to 5.2 +/- 0.01. Experiments on transfection show that proviral DNA studied possesses biological activity in respect to cell transformation and virus production. The infectivity of DNA from hamster tumor does not depend on the expression of group-specific (gs) antigen in the recipient cells.

Regional blood-to-tissue transport of 14C-alpha-aminoisobutyric acid (AIB) was measured in avian sarcoma virus (ASV)-induced rat brain tumors and expressed as a unidirectional transfer rate constant (K). The magnitude of K was variable and did not correlate with histologic classification or specific features of the tumors, with the possible exception of sarcomas. Averaged mean K was highest for anaplastic astrocytomas and lowest for gemistocytic astrocytomas (GA); however, the range of measurement within the individual tumor classifications (except GA) was broad. K was not consistently related to tumor size or tumor location; choroid plexus and subependymal tumors were exceptions and had higher K values. The averaged mean K of tumor-free brain in the contralateral hemisphere (CBA) was comparable to that of control animals. The averaged mean K in brain adjacent to tumor was greater than in CBA and generally one-third to one-half of the value in tumor periphery, indicating that these tumors affect the permeability characteristics of adjacent brain capillaries. Estimates of the fractional extraction (E) of AIB by the tumors ranged between 0.009 and 0.2; E's in this range indicate that tumor capillaries are not freely permeable to this solute.

35S- and 32P-labeled proteins from control chick embryo fibroblasts and from fibroblasts transformed by UR2 sarcoma virus, or by a temperature-sensitive mutant (tsLA29) of Rous sarcoma virus, were separated by two-dimensional electrophoresis on giant gels to detect transformation-specific changes in protein synthesis and total phosphorylation. A nontransforming avian retrovirus, UR2-associated virus (UR2AV), was also studied. Virus-coded proteins appear in whole cell lysates of all infected cells. The structural proteins can be identified by comparison with proteins immunoprecipitated with antivirus serum. The transforming proteins pp60src and p68ros, present in cells transformed with Rous sarcoma virus and UR2, respectively, are phosphorylated in vivo. Eighteen increases and eight decreases in cellular phosphoproteins are associated with transformation, and revert toward normal levels when cells infected with tsLA29 are incubated at 42 degrees C. These changes are more extensive than previously reported, but none represent new phosphorylations, since all phosphoproteins seen in transformed cells also appear to be phosphorylated to a certain extent in control cells. Fifteen cellular proteins show increased relative rates of synthesis apparently related either to transformation or to growth at 42 degrees C. Four other proteins are increased exclusively in cells incubated at 42 degrees C, but not at 37 degrees C, whether transformed or not. Eleven additional increases in the synthesis of cellular proteins, many quite large, and one seemingly a de novo induction, appear to be specific for transformation. These changes occur in cells transformed by either UR2 or Rous sarcoma virus at 37 degrees C, do not occur with UR2AV infection, and tend to revert in cells infected with tsLA29 incubated at 42 degrees C. These 11 changes may represent increases in cellular gene expression that are related specifically to the maintenance of the transformed state.

A comparison of the Pronase-sensitive glycosylated species detectable under permissive and nonpermissive conditions by normal rat kidney cells transformed by a temperature-sensitive derivative of Rous sarcoma virus reveals relative decreased labeling of high-molecular-weight glycosylated species under conditions that allow the expression of transformation, in medium supplemented either with 0.5% calf serum or with human alpha2-macroglobulin, 100 mug/ml. Exposure of the cultures to cholera toxin or dibutyryl cyclic adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate leads to a relative increase in the glycosylation of the high-molecular weight species in both wild-type transformed and temperature-sensitive cells exposed to conditions that allow the expression of transformation.

RNA--RNA molecular hybridization between [125I] RNA from Rous sarcoma virus virions and RNAs isolated from various subcellular fractions, i.e. nuclei, mitochondria, free and membrane-bound polyribosomes, from tumors induced by RSV in chickens resulted in the formation of RNAase-resistant hybrids only with the RNA of mitochondria and membrane-bound polysomes. The origin of complementary regions in the RNAs from these organelles is discussed.

Tumors which are induced in chickens by Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) usually grow progressively for several weeks and then regress. pp60src kinase activity was found to be reduced in cultured tumor cells which derived from regressing sarcomas by 60-75% as compared to progressively growing neoplasms. We further found that a cellular pp89 which co-precipitated with pp60src was largely diminished in tumor cells derived from regressing as compared with progressively growing sarcomas. In contrast, immunoprecipitation analyses from membrane or cytosol fractions did not reveal any significant differences between these 2 types of tumor cells in distribution of pp60src. Moreover, partial proteolysis or isoelectric focussing of labelled immunoprecipitated pp60src did not reveal major differences between the 2 tumor cell types. These data indicate that the lack of pp89 cell binding to pp60src in regressing sarcoma cells correlates well with the diminution of the pp60src kinase activity in these cells, but does not affect the transport of pp60src to the plasma membrane.

The green (oxidized flavoproteins) fluorescence intensity was found to increase during investigation of NADH and oxidized flavoproteins fluorescence with the use of optimal excitation of different fluorescence bands. This effect was observed under excitation with blue light (436 nm). It is suggested that in some malignant cells, the structure of flavoproteins (probably of mitochondrial ones) may be altered in the way of increasing the quantum yield under the action of light irradiation.

Deposition of fibronectin (FN) was studied by indirect immunofluorescent staining, employing monospecific rabbit anti-human FN antibody, in the following 3 systems: cultures of cells derived from Rous sarcomas of chickens and of normal chick fibroblasts; frozen sections of chicken Rous sarcomas; and frozen sections of mouse and human mammary tissue, normal and neoplastic. The normal fibroblasts produced a well-oriented, delicate, fibrillar FN network. The sarcoma cells in culture also formed a FN-positive matrix, but one very different in appearance, consisting of coarse, unoriented strands. FN was also present abundantly between the cells of the sarcomas in vivo. In normal mammary tissue, FN was localized predominantly in the basal lamina region, well delineated from the surrounding FN-reactive stroma. The epithelial cells were generally, but not always, FN-negative. In apparently normal tissue areas of the breasts of mammary carcinoma patients, epithelial cells with highly reactive cell peripheries were frequently seen; the stroma surrounding the positive cells was often poor in FN and the basal lamina region lacked the substance. Mammary carcinoma cells were almost always negative, but it was characteristic of these tumours that the surrounding stroma displayed FN richly.

The time course of uptake, retention and clearance of the cationic lipophilic dye, rhodamine 123 (Rh123), within the central nervous system was qualitatively evaluated in rats. Weanling rats were injected intracerebrally with avian sarcoma virus, which induced malignant gliomas in situ before injection of Rh123. Comparison was made of the amount of fluorescence of Rh123 within the normal cerebral cortex, myelinated tracts of the brain, meninges, choroid plexus, and neoplastic foci at 1, 4, 8, 12 and 24 hours after intravenous injection. Fluorescence microscopy was utilized to identify tissues containing the dye. Normal neuropil did not contain Rh123 at any of the time periods studied. Gliomas retained the dye at 1, 4, 8 and 12 hours, with increasing uniformity of distribution and decreasing intensity of fluorescence over this time period. Fluorescence was not detected at 24 hours within the neoplastic tissues, but was evident at all time periods studied within the choroid plexus. The specific retention of Rh123 by malignant glioma and by the choroid plexus in vivo suggests that Rh123 may be useful for photochemotherapeutic treatment of brain neoplasms and disorders of the choroid plexus.

The description is given of the distribution of poly(A)-containing mRNA in different subcellular fractions (nuclei, mitochondria, free- and membrane-bound polyribosomes) from the normal tissues hepatoma MD and chick Rous. The amount of poly(A)-RNA is found to increase in all tumor cell fractions, but free polysomes.

The oxidation of spermine in vitro by a mixture of polyamine oxidase and diamine oxidase from pig kidney gives rise to malondialdehyde via 3-aminopropanol as the intermediate. Conversely, with spermidine, under similar experimental conditions, no evidence could be obtained for malondialdehyde formation within the limits of sensitivity of the assay (2.0 nmol). The activities of both these enzymes show about a 2-fold increase in normal rat kidney cells (LA31 NRK) transformed by the temperature sensitive mutant of Rous sarcoma virus (LA31) and incubated at the non permissive temperature (39 degrees C) compared to the activities in LA31 NRK at the permissive temperature (33 degrees C). These same enzymatic activities show no temperature dependent changes in normal rat kidney cells (NRK) or in these same cells infected by the wild type virus (NRK B77). In extracts derived from Friend erythroleukemic cells induced to differentiate by dimethyl sulfoxide or hexamethylene bis acetamide, spermine oxidation takes place more efficiently than in non induced cells. A rise in diamine oxidase activity is seen in LA31 NRK (39 degrees C) 12 h after the temperature shift, whereas morphological manifestations of normalcy are seen only at 48 h. The Km of diamine oxidase is 10(-6) M for putrescine and 10(-3) M for 3-aminopropanol. A possible mechanism involving the well documented acetylation of putrescine [23,26] is proposed for diverting intracellular putrescine away from cytosolic diamine oxidase and towards intramitochondrial monoamine oxidase.

The DNA isolated from rat virogenic XC cells transformed by Rous sarcoma virus retains standard transfecting activity for 7 months when the DNA solution in 0.1 X PBS, containing 10% glycerol is stored at -70 degrees C. The value of the sedimentation constant S20w does not significantly change during storage.

Protein profiles of three tumor mammalian cell lines and three control cell lines were analyzed by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Comparison of the cells labeled metabolically with 35S-methionine has revealed obvious differences in an area of molecular weights 34 000--36 000 daltons and pH 4.5-5.0. Two spots have been proposed to be alpha- and beta-tropomyosin subunits. Their synthesis decreases after cell transformation.

The insulin receptor purified from human placenta by sequential affinity chromatography on wheat germ agglutinin- and insulin-Sepharose to near homogeneity retained tyrosine-specific protein kinase activity. This purified insulin receptor kinase specifically catalyzed the incorporation of 32P from [gamma-32P]ATP into not only the beta-subunit of the insulin receptor but also histone H2B, a synthetic peptide which is sequentially similar to the site of tyrosine phosphorylation in pp60src (a gene product of the Rous sarcoma virus) and antibodies to pp60src present in the sera obtained from three rabbits bearing tumors induced by the Rous sarcoma virus. In each case, phosphorylation occurred exclusively on tyrosine residues. Insulin stimulated phosphorylation of these substrates 3- to 5-fold. Kinetic analysis using the synthetic peptide indicated that insulin acted by increasing the Vmax of peptide phosphorylation from about 3.1 to 9.5 nmol X mg-1 of protein X min-1, whereas the value of the Km for the peptide, about 1.5 mM, was not significantly changed. This kinase acted weakly on casein, alpha-S-casein, actin, and a tyrosine-containing peptide analogue of a serine-containing peptide used commonly as a substrate for the cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinases. These data show that the insulin receptor kinase displays specificity toward exogenous substrates similar to the substrate specificity observed for pp60src and the protein kinase activity associated with the receptor for epidermal growth factor. The data suggest that the catalytic sites of these three tyrosine kinases are similar and that insulin activates its receptor kinase by increasing the Vmax.

Human placenta alkaline phosphatase (HP-ALP), a glycoprotein, was stained histochemically for the purpose of examining the concanavalin A (Con A) binding sites on the cell surface. HP-ALP was bound to the cell surface by Con A. This simple method successfully detected Con A binding sites on the cell surface.

The authors compared the effect of RNA substances isolated from chick sarcomas producing Rous virus and hamster sarcomas not producing the virus. In both species of animals the tumors were induced by the same Rous virus strain (Carr-Zilber). The treatment of embryonal cells cultures both of the chick and hamster with RNA preparations resulted in the morphological transformation. The action of RNA-s would reduce considerably or eliminated totally the effect, while DNA-s failed to influence the activity of the preparations under study. Embryonal cells culture in hamsters proved to be more sensitive to RNA action than chick cells.

The mechanisms by which cells acquire the capacity to invade interstitial connective tissues during malignancy are as yet uncertain. Since the fibronectin receptor complex has been implicated in transient, developmentally regulated steps of migration and morphogenesis in embryogenesis, we examined whether this receptor might be reexpressed at elevated levels in tumors. Immunofluorescence revealed increased expression of the receptor throughout frozen sections of Rous sarcoma virus-induced tumors in chickens, and expression was enhanced 4.7-fold after such malignant transformation of fibrocytes in vivo. Frozen thin sections showed that the increased antigen was localized diffusely in the plasma membrane. Western immunoblotting with monoclonal antibodies and immunoprecipitation analyses indicated that the tumor cell receptor contained all three known avian receptor subunits, i.e., Bands 1, 2, and 3. This type of induction of a key extracellular matrix receptor involved in cell migration may be a prerequisite for tumor cell invasion.

Mouse ascites sarcoma cells (SR-C3H/He cells) were made permeable to nucleoside triphosphates by treatment with nonionic detergents in a nearly isotonic condition. The permeable cells synthesized DNA in the presence of the four deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates, ATP, Mg2+, and the proper ionic environment. The optimum detergent concentration for DNA synthesis was 0.015--0.020% with Triton X-100, 0.020% with Nonidet P-40, and about 0.0025% with Brij 58. Higher concentrations of detergents were rather inhibitory to DNA synthesis. DNA synthesis in Triton-permeabilized cells was thought to be replicative, and the activity in the optimum conditions was much higher than that measured in hypotonic permeable cells or in isolated nuclei. These studies show the potential usefulness of detergent treatment for examining DNA replication in mammalian cells in vitro.

Analyses of the DNA polymerase present in the inner mitochondrial membrane and matrix fraction of the mitochondria isolated from Rous sarcoma cells and chick embryo cells, and in the lysate of Rous sarcoma virus were performed, using a modification of the thin-layer gel filtration on Sephadex G-150 superfine. The method allowed the simultaneous determination of the molecular weight of the isolated enzymes. In the mitochondria or Rous sarcoma cells an RNA-directed DNA polymerase, activated by poly(rA): oligo (dT) synthetic duplex, was detected, with the same molecular weight as the reverse transcriptase isolated from Rous sarcoma virus. Such enzyme was not found in the mitochondria of chick embryo cells.

DNA synthesis was studied in mouse ascites sarcoma cells using a permeable cell system. The sarcoma was induced by the Schmidt-Ruppin strain of Rous sarcoma virus. The cells were made permeable to nucleoside triphosphates by treatment with a hypotonic buffer containing 10 mM Tris Cl, 4 mM MgCl2, 1 mM EDTA, and 6 mM 2-mercaptoethanol (pH 8.0). DNA-synthetic activity in the permeable cells was highly dependent on four deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates, adenosine triphosphates, Mg2+, and a proper ionic environment. The activity was stimulated about 50% by the addition of an appropriate concentration of cytidine triphosphate, guanosine triphosphate, and uridine triphosphate in an assay mixture containing adenosine triphosphate and four deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates. DNA synthesis was confined to the nucleus and was sensitive to N-ethylmaleimide and DNase. The activity assayed by the permeable cell system correlated closely with the DNA-replicating activity assayed by [3H]deoxythymidine incorporation in intact cells. The close correlation between DNA synthesis in vitro and in vivo was further confirmed in cultured sarcoma cells synchronized with DNA synthesis. Analysis of the DNA synthesized in vitro by alkaline cesium sulfate density gradient centrifugation showed that over half the DNA synthesized in permeable cells was due to elongation of strands initiated in vivo. The permeable cell system appears to be a useful method for examining DNA replication of cells in suspensions.

Sodium butyrate at 5 X 10(-3) M reversibly arrests the proliferation of both normal and RSV-infected chicken heart mesenchymal cells. This finding suggests that butyrate acts by causing non-specific inhibition of cell proliferation, rather then by specifically suppressing the neoplastic phenotype or by inducing recovery of cells from the neoplastic state.

The presence of virus-specific RNA in commercial chick embryos and its lack in chick embryos of leukemia-free chicken farm of the USSR AMS Oncological Research Center as well as in cell cultures from RIF-free chicken infected with Marek's disease virus was demonstrated by hybridizationof 3H-DNA-product of Rous sarcoma virus synthesized in vitro in the presence of actinomycin D with the total preparation of cellular RNA.

Low molecular weight nuclear RNAs (LMWN RNAs) of normal and neoplastic tissues: the rat liver and Zajdela hepatoma, mouse spleen and NK/Ly ascites tumor, as well as the cultures of normal chick embryo fibroblasts and of those transformed with Rous sarcoma virus were studied by electrophoresis in 8% and 15% polyacrylamide gels. As a result of the study no qualitative differences, i.e. differences in the number of LMWN RNA main fractions and their electrophoretic mobility were found. But there were revealed quantitative variations in the relative amount of definite fractions of these RNAs. An increase of the U3 RNA content in ascites tumors may be connected with an enhancement of the ribosomal RNA synthesis. Variations in the content of low molecular weight RNAs in oncogenic virus transformed cells may reflect an excessive synthesis of low molecular weight viral RNAs during the process of virus reproduction. The quantitative alterations observed seem to be of special value since LMWN RNAs are likely to perform regulatory functions.