Regulation of expression driven by human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and human T-cell leukemia virus type I long terminal repeats in pluripotential human embryonic cells.

Human pluripotential embryonic teratocarcinoma cells differentially expressed gene activity controlled by the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and human T-cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-I) long terminal repeats (LTRs) when differentiation was induced by the morphogen all-trans retinoic acid. The alterations occurred after commitment and before the appearance of the multiple cell types characteristic of these pluripotential cells. After commitment, gene activity controlled by the HIV-1 LTR markedly increased, whereas that controlled by the HTLV-I LTR decreased. Steady-state mRNA levels and nuclear run-on transcription indicated that the increased HIV-1-directed activity during differentiation occurred posttranscriptionally, whereas the decreased HTLV-I activity was at the transcriptional level. Phorbol esters did not cause commitment but strongly enhanced expression by both viral LTRs at the transcriptional level. A specific inhibitor of protein kinase C, 1-(5-isoquinolinylsulfonyl)-2-methylpiperazine, indicated that the enhanced activity involved the activation of protein kinase(s) C; altered cyclic nucleotide metabolism was apparently not involved. Differentiating cells gradually lost the ability to respond to phorbol ester stimulation. Experiments with a deletion mutant of the HIV-1 LTR suggested that this was due to imposition of negative regulation during differentiation that was not reversed by phorbol ester induction. Cycloheximide, with or without phorbol ester, slightly stimulated HIV-1-directed activity at the transcriptional level and massively increased the amounts of steady-state mRNA by posttranscriptional superinduction. It appeared, however, that new nuclear protein synthesis was required for maximal transcriptional stimulation by phorbol esters. Thus, changing cellular regulatory mechanisms influenced human retrovirus expression during human embryonic cell differentiation.