SV40 activates transcription from the transferrin receptor promoter by inducing a factor which binds to the CRE/AP-1 recognition sequence.

During the course of lytic infection by simian virus 40 (SV40), expression of both the viral late genes and certain host cellular genes is induced. The promoter of the cellular transferrin receptor (TR) gene contains a DNA sequence which is similar to the AP-1- and AP-4-binding region in SV40 which has been implicated in the control of the viral late promoter. Expression of TR is needed for cells to enter S-phase and is therefore expected to be important for the SV40 lytic cycle. Here we show that the level of TR mRNA in vivo was increased by SV40 infection. A factor which activates transcription from the TR promoter in vitro was specifically induced in SV40-infected cells. Gel mobility shift assays with an oligonucleotide comprising this part of the TR promoter showed three nucleoprotein complexes to be formed with proteins from CV-1 cells. Following SV40 infection, one of the complexes was increased ten-fold. Formation of this complex was specifically reduced by competition with the phorbol ester-responsive element of the collagenase gene, implying that the factor is a member of the AP-1/Jun/Fos family. Cross-linking of the complex by ultraviolet light showed major DNA-binding components to be proteins of about 55 kD and 47 kD. Removal of this factor by adding the oligonucleotide to in vitro transcription reactions with the TR promoter, abolished the activation of TR transcription. The factor which binds to the TR promoter co-sedimented with SV40 chromosomes extracted late in infection. This suggests that similar transcriptional regulatory proteins are involved in controlling transcription from both the SV40 and the TR promoters, and that the virus can use a common mechanism to induce viral and host cellular transcription.