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H.H. Niller, D. Salamon, M. Takacs, J. Uhlig, H. Wolf, J. Minarovits
Protein-DNA Interaction and CpG Methylation at rep*/vIL-10p of Latent Epstein-Barr Virus Genomes in Lymphoid Cell Lines
The viral interleukin-10 promoter (vIL-10p), overlapping the rep* element in the EpsteinBarr virus (EBV) genome, is a promoter element active mostly in the late phase of the lytic cycle and immediately upon infection of B cells. rep* was, through transfection experiments with small plasmids, characterised as a cis element supporting oriP replicative function. In this study, in vivo protein binding and CpG methylation at rep*/vIL-10p were analysed in five cell lines that harbour strictly latent EBV genomes. Contrary to the invariably unmethylated dyad symmetry element (DS) of oriP, rep*/vIL-10p was highly methylated and showed only traces of protein binding in all examined cell lines. This result is in agreement with vIL-10p being an inactive promoter of EBV genomes, and makes it less likely that rep* functions as a replicative element of latent EBV genomes.
Biological Chemistry, Walter de Gruyter
Print ISSN: 1431-6730
Volume: 382, 10/2001
Pages: 1411 - 1419