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RESEARCH COMMUNICATION |
a Basel Institute for Immunology, CH-4005 Basel, Switzerland
b Department of Immunology and Oncology, Centro Nacional de Biotecnología-CSIC, Universidad Autónoma, Campus de Cantoblanco, E-28049 Madrid, Spain
c Institute of Molecular Biology, Vienna Biocenter, University of Vienna,A-1030 Vienna, Austria
| ABSTRACT |
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Key Words: translation initiation mRNP particles polysome-bound mRNA
| INTRODUCTION |
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Translational regulation has been described in many individual genes, but the most important parameterthe overall contribution of translational control to a specific physiological processremains unknown. A strategy was devised to analyze the complexity of translationally regulated mRNAs by using a combination of subcellular RNA fractionation into polysome-bound and free ribonucleoprotein particle (mRNP) fractions, followed by in vitro translation of these fractions, separation of the reaction products by 2-dimensional (2D) gels, and computer-based analysis.
A mouse T cell clone, before and after antigenic stimulation, was used as a source of free mRNP and polysome-bound mRNAs; unstimulated T lymphocytes (naive or memory) have undetectable DNA synthesis rates and low rates of RNA and protein synthesis. After antigenic or mitogenic stimulation, there is a burst of protein synthesis (19, 20) that correlates with elevated
IF expression and phosphorylation (2123). These changes are followed by the induction of more than 100 genes (24) and entry into the cell cycle, leading to a limited number of cell divisions (24, 25). Our analysis clearly indicates that a subset of individual mRNA species are translationally controlled. The percentage of translationally controlled mRNA species is comparable to the percentage of transcriptionally activated mRNAs, showing that translational control contributes significantly to the changes in gene expression that result in T cell activation.
| MATERIALS AND METHODS |
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RNA fractionation in sucrose step gradients
Harvesting, cell lysis, and the preparation of sucrose step gradients were performed as described for polysome gradients (28). In brief, cells were lysed in 1 ml of extraction buffer [10 mM N-2-hydroxyethylpiperazine-N'-2-ethanesulfonic acid, pH 7.5, 3 mM MgCl2, 40 mM KCl, 5% glycerol, 0.5% (v/v) NP-40, and 400 U/ml RNasin (Promega, Madison, Wis.)]. After removal of nuclei, the cytosolic supernatant was supplemented with 150 mg/ml cycloheximide, 1 mM phenyl-methyl-sulfonyl- fluoride, 5 mg/ml heparin, and 20 mM dithiothreitol. Mitochondria and membrane debris were removed by centrifugation, and 1 ml of cytosolic extract was layered on a 4 ml sucrose cushion (30% w/v) in extraction buffer supplemented with 0.5 mg/ml heparin, 10 mM dithiothreitol, and 100 µg/ml cycloheximide. The samples were centrifuged (130,000xg, 2 h, 4°C in a TST-55 rotor) and 1 ml fractions were collected and deproteinized with 250 µg/ml proteinase K in the presence of 1% (w/v) sodium dodecyl sulfate. After phenol-chloroform extraction and ethanol precipitation, samples were dissolved in 100 µl H2O and the amount of RNA in each fraction was determined photometrically.
Northern blot analysis and polyadenylated mRNA preparation
Aliquots of the cytoplasmic RNA samples were separated on denaturing formaldehyde-agarose gels, followed by RNA staining and transfer to nylon membranes. Northern hybridization, using random-primed 32P-labeled cDNA probes specific for mouse ß-actin (29), eIF1
mRNA, and mouse ribosomal protein L32 (rpL32) cDNA (obtained from K. Campbell, Basel Institute for Immunology), and washing were both performed as described (30). The bulk of the RNA was used for quantitative preparation of polyadenylated mRNA [poly(A)+ mRNA] from ribosome-free and ribosome-bound fractions, from both resting and activated T cells, using oligotex(dT)tm beads (Qiagen, Hilden, Germany) as described (31).
In vitro translation reactions and computer analysis of the 2D gels
Ribosome-free and ribosome-bound poly(A)+ mRNA samples from resting and activated T cells were translated in vitro using nuclease-treated rabbit reticulocyte lysates (Promega), in the presence of 35S-methionine (Amersham, Little Chalfont, U.K.) (32). Reaction products were separated by 2D gel electrophoresis according to O'Farrell (33), using the ISODALT system (34). The resulting radiofluorographs were scanned and subjected to image analysis with the Kepler software system (Large Scale Biology Corporation, Rockville, Md.) as described (35). Briefly, image files were processed for noise and streak removal as well as background correction. The processed image files were converted into spot files by spot modeling and fitting. This transformation reduced data size by three orders of magnitude. In the abstracted image files or `spot lists', each spot was defined by five parameters: x and y coordinates, spot volume parameters sx, sy, and amplitude. One spot list pattern was chosen, assigned a numbering system, and termed the master pattern, to which all others were subsequently compared. All spot list patterns were then matched to the master pattern and individual spots received numbers, called master spot numbers, congruent with the master spots. Spots on individual patterns that did not occur on the master pattern were transferred into it with a utility provided by the program. At the end of the matching process, the master pattern contained all spots occurring in any of the patterns. Information on each and all spots was stored in the database, which kept track of all images, spot lists, and spot identities and maintained congruence within the system.
| RESULTS |
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and rpL32 mRNA, two known targets for translational regulation (36), and ß-actin mRNA, a gene whose expression is controlled mainly at the transcriptional level. As predicted, there was a clear redistribution upon T cell activation of free eIF1
and rpL32 transcripts from the free mRNP fraction toward polysome-bound fractions, whereas ß-actin mRNA remained exclusively ribosome associated (
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Since the degree of ribosome association cannot be simultaneously determined for many mRNA species, as an alternative we analyzed the distribution of the corresponding in vitro translation products after separating the samples in 2D gel electrophoresis. The processed images of the resulting radiofluorographs from an experiment using the 11.3.7 mouse T cell clone before and after antigenic stimulation are represented in
Fig. 2.
The mRNAs from the free mRNP fraction were not associated with ribosomes and obviously not translated in vivo. They were, however, efficiently translated in vitro (
Fig. 2, top panels). 2D gel coordinates for the majority of in vitro translation products from the free mRNP fractions could be precisely matched to corresponding products from the ribosome-bound fractions (65% in resting and 79% in activated T cells) (
Fig. 2,
Fig. 3B).
These data demonstrate that mRNAs in the free mRNP fraction are functional transcripts, indicate that the cells possess a means of actively suppressing translation of a subset of transcripts, and show the specificity of translational control as verified by the differential distribution of ß-actin and rpL32 mRNAs (
Fig. 1). In addition, the average amount of individual in vitro translation product from ribosome-free and ribosome-bound fractions was similar (
Fig. 3A). Thus, the presence of free mRNAs could not be explained by a limitation in the capacity of the cellular translation machinery.
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To detect transcripts that may undergo translational activation or repression upon T lymphocyte activation, the 2D gels were analyzed quantitatively. Breakdown of the raw data revealed that 394 of 445 spots from resting T cells and 529 of 554 spots from activated T cells were ribosome associated, indicating that the large majority of mRNA species were actively engaged in protein synthesis. However, 96 spots (in both resting and activated T cells) corresponded to mRNAs present simultaneously in both fractions. An additional 51 spots (11.5%) from resting and 25 spots (4.5%) from activated T cells corresponded to mRNAs found exclusively in the free mRNP fraction (
Fig. 3B). The apparent translational inhibition for these transcripts was therefore complete, since the products were unique to the free mRNP fraction.
During T cell activation, translationally controlled mRNAs should redistribute between free mRNP and ribosome-associated compartments. This, in turn, should be mirrored by relative intensity changes in the in vitro translation products. In this study, species were considered translationally activated when the spot intensity ratio (free/bound) of resting cells divided by the (free/bound) ratio of activated cells was
2; translational repression was assumed when this ratio was
0.5. Spots were excluded from this analysis if their absolute intensity was close to the detection limit. Using this criterion, 86 mRNA species of a total of 685 (12.6%) appeared to be translationally regulated (
Fig. 2,
Fig. 4).
Of these, 54 (7.9%) corresponded to translationally activated transcripts (
Fig. 4, top). Despite a general increase in translation efficiency after T cell activation (20, 36), another 32 species (4.7%) represented translationally repressed mRNA species (
Fig. 4, bottom). This demonstrates the specificity of the process, since the increased translation rate does not simply cause more effective ribosome engagement by a subset of poorly translated mRNAs; rather, a group of transcripts is translationally repressed under these conditions.
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It is well established that many genes are transcriptionally activated upon T cell activation. From these 2D gels, we could also estimate the complexity of mRNAs that appear or disappear after T lymphocyte activation. Upon T cell activation, the intensity of 249 species (36%) increased by at least 10-fold; another 96 species (14%) showed a decrease of the same magnitude. The vast majority of these products may represent transcriptionally regulated mRNAs, although we cannot formally exclude the possibility that some correspond to trancripts exhibiting changes in mRNA stability, processing, or export efficiency (
Fig. 5).
This combination of techniques thus allowed direct comparison of the transcript fraction regulated by changes in the total amount and the percentage of translationally controlled transcripts in a particular physiological transition.
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| DISCUSSION |
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, and rPL32 mRNAs between free mRNP and polysome-bound fractions directly demonstrated the specificity of the distribution. The mRNAs present in the free mRNP fraction were functional, since they contained poly(A)-tail, and after deproteinization, could be translated in vitro with rabbit reticulocyte lysates, probably into full-length proteins, as confirmed by analysis of the 2D gels (The presence of apparently intact mRNA species in the free mRNP fraction was unlikely to be explained by any limitation of the cellular translation machinery, since 1) individual mRNA species were affected differently, and 2) despite the general increase in translation efficiency that takes place upon T cell activation, translation of 5.4% of the mRNA species was repressed. Rather, it indicates the existence of physiological mechanisms regulating the translation of single mRNA species or whole mRNA subclasses. This interpretation was strengthened by the observation that a significant fraction of untranslated mRNAs was mobilized into polysomes after T cell activation, whereas others that were previously actively engaged in translation became repressed. Although this regulation would take place at the level of translational initiation, which might involve whole classes of mRNAs with common structural determinants, we cannot distinguish whether it involves specific mRNA binding proteins such as the one involved in the control of ferritin mRNA (37) or a more general mechanism such as signal-dependent phosphorylation of translation factors (38).
Since the rate-limiting step in protein synthesis is thought to be translation initiation (13), we hypothesized that most translationally repressed mRNAs should be devoid of ribosomes. After physiological changes in the cell (i.e., T cell activation), some of these mRNAs would become ribosome bound. A strategy was hence devised to combine a series of well-established techniques to fractionate free mRNPs from polysome-associated mRNAs and to identify their particular protein products on a large scale, allowing statistical analysis. The results indicate that translational control has a prominent role in regulating gene expression during T cell activation. The percentage of mRNA species affected is, indeed, of the same order of magnitude as transcriptionally controlled ones. Translational regulation may be helpful in inducing rapid de novo synthesis of critical regulatory proteins, and would bypass the requirement for extracellular signal transduction pathways to the nucleus, transcription, processing, and nuclear RNA export.
If specific regulation at the translational level is an important step, it would be expected that deregulation produces a discernible phenotype. It has been described that alterations in translation mechanisms have the potential to form the molecular basis of certain diseases. For instance, overexpression of a dominant negative mutant of the
-interferon-induced p65 kinase or mutation of its substrate, eIF2
, gives rise to malignant transformation (3941). Overexpression of initiation factors such as the cap binding protein eIF4E also leads to malignant transformation (42), suggesting that increased translation efficiency, and not the mere mutation of these factors, is responsible for the malignant transformation. Translational control of c-myc and p53 proto-oncogenes had also been implicated in human diseases such as multiple myeloma and acute myelogenous leukemia, respectively (43, 44). In T lymphocytes, translational control of the growth factor IL-2 has been described as one of the molecular mechanisms responsible for the induction of T cell clonal anergy, a phenomenon characterized by the lack of response of the anergic T cells to subsequent stimulation (45). Our data allow us to hypothesize that the prominent role of translational control regulating gene expression is not restricted to T cell activation, but is a general phenomenon involved in a variety of other physiological transitions including macrophage activation, lactogenesis, tumorigenesis, or apoptosis. The approach described here can be applied extensively to determine the complexity of translationally controlled mRNAs in these and other situations.
The nature of mRNAs translationally regulated after T cell activation is still unknown. Experiments are currently under way to isolate their cDNAs, which will enable identification and characterization of the trans-acting factors that modulate translation initiation of individual transcripts or structurally related mRNA subfamilies.
| ACKNOWLEDGMENTS |
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| FOOTNOTES |
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1 Correspondence: Department of Immunology and Oncology, Centro Nacional de Biotecnología-CSIC, Universidad Autónoma, Campus de Cantoblanco, E-28049 Madrid, Spain. E-mail: jasanz{at}cnb.uam.es ![]()
3 Abbreviations: 2D gels, 2-dimensional gels; eIF, eukaryotic translation initiation factors; IL-2, interleukin 2; mRNPs, free ribonucleoprotein particles; poly(A)+ mRNA, polyadenylated mRNA; rpL32, ribosomal protein L32. ![]()
Received for publication May 12, 1997. Accepted for publication October 30, 1997.
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