The retinoblastoma protein (pRB) and its two relatives, p107 and p130, regulate development and cell proliferation in part by inhibiting the activity of E2F-regulated promoters. We have used high-density oligonucleotide arrays to identify genes in which expression changed in response to activation of E2F1, E2F2, and E2F3. We show that the E2Fs control the expression of several genes that are involved in cell proliferation. We also show that the E2Fs regulate a number of genes involved in apoptosis, differentiation, and development. These results provide possible genetic explanations to the variety of phenotypes observed as a consequence of a deregulated pRB/E2F pathway.

Loss of function of the retinoblastoma protein, pRB, leads to lack of differentiation, hyperproliferation and apoptosis. Inactivation of pRB results in deregulated E2F activity, which in turn induces entry to S-phase and apoptosis. Induction of apoptosis by either the loss of pRB or the deregulation of E2F activity occurs via both p53-dependent and p53-independent mechanisms. The mechanism by which E2F induces apoptosis is still unclear. Here we show that E2F1 directly regulates the expression of Apaf-1, the gene for apoptosis protease-activating factor 1. These results provide a direct link between the deregulation of the pRB pathway and apoptosis. Furthermore, because the pRB pathway is functionally inactivated in most cancers, the identification of Apaf-1 as a transcriptional target for E2F might explain the increased sensitivity of tumour cells to chemotherapy. We also show that, independently of the pRB pathway, Apaf-1 is a direct transcriptional target of p53, suggesting that p53 might sensitize cells to apoptosis by increasing Apaf-1 levels.

In cells of higher eukaryotes, cyclin D-dependent kinases Cdk4 and Cdk6 and, possibly, cyclin E-dependentCdk2 positively regulate the G 1-to S-phase transition, by phosphorylating the retinoblastoma protein (pRb), thereby releasing E2F transcription factors that control S-phase genes. Here we performed microinjection and transfection experiments using rat R12 fibroblasts, their derivatives conditionally overexpressing cyclins D1 or E, and human U-2-OS cells, to explore the action of G~ cyclins and the relationship of E2F and cyclin E in S-phase induction. We demonstrate that ectopic expression of cyclin E, but not cyclin D1, can override G~ arrest imposed by either the p16 INK4a Cdk inhibitor specific for Cdk4 and Cdk6 or a novel phosphorylation-deficient mutant pRb. Several complementary approaches to assess E2F activation, including quantitative reporter assays in live cells, showed that the cyclin E-induced S phase and completion of the cell division cycle can occur in the absence of E2F-mediated transactivation. Together with the ability of cyclin E to overcome a G~ block induced by expression of dominant-negative mutant DP-1, a heterodimeric partner of E2Fs, these results provide evidence for a cyclin E-controlled S phase-promoting event in somatic cells downstream of or parallel to phosphorylation of pRb and independent of E2F activation. They furthermore indicate that a lack of E2F-mediated transactivation can be compensated by hyperactivation of this cyclin E-controlled event.[Key Words: Cyclin E; cyclin D1; p16; pRb phosphorylation; E2F; S phase] Received November 11, 1996; revised version accepted April 9, 1997.Progression from G~ to S phase of the mammalian cell cycle is regulated by cyclin D-dependent kinases Cdk4 and Cdk6 complexed to D-type cyclins, and by Cdk2 bound to cyclins E or A

Functional inactivation of the pRB pathway is a very frequent event in human cancer, resulting in deregulated activity of the E2F transcription factors. To understand the functional role of the E2Fs in cell proliferation, we have developed cell lines expressing E2F-1, E2F-2, and E2F-3 fused to the estrogen receptor ligand binding domain (ER). In this study, we demonstrated that activation of all three E2Fs could relieve the mitogen requirement for entry into S phase in Rat1 fibroblasts and that E2F activity leads to a shortening of the G 0 -G 1 phase of the cell cycle by 6 to 7 h. In contrast to the current assumption that E2F-1 is the only E2F capable of inducing apoptosis, we showed that deregulated E2F-2 and E2F-3 activities also result in apoptosis. Using the ERE2F-expressing cell lines, we demonstrated that several genes containing E2F DNA binding sites are efficiently induced by the E2Fs in the absence of protein synthesis. Furthermore, CDC25A is defined as a novel E2F target whose expression can be directly regulated by E2F-1. Data showing that CDC25A is an essential target for E2F-1, since its activity is required for efficient induction of S phase by E2F-1, are provided. Finally, our results show that expression of two E2F target genes, namely CDC25A and cyclin E, is sufficient to induce entry into S phase in quiescent fibroblasts. Taken together, our results provide an important step in defining how E2F activity leads to deregulated proliferation.

The E2F transcription factors are essential for regulating the correct timing of activation of several genes whose products are implicated in cell proliferation and DNA replication. The E2Fs are targets for negative regulation by the retinoblastoma protein family, which includes pRB, p107, and p130, and they are in a pathway that is frequently found altered in human cancers. There are five members of the E2F family, and they can be divided into two functional subgroups. Whereas, upon overexpression, E2F-1, -2, and -3 induce S phase in quiescent fibroblasts and override G 1 arrests mediated by the p16 INK4A tumor suppressor protein or neutralizing antibodies to cyclin D1, E2F-4 and -5 do not. Using E2F-1 and E2F-4 as representatives of the two subgroups, we showed here, by constructing a set of chimeric proteins, that the amino terminus of E2F-1 is sufficient to confer S-phase-inducing potential as well as the ability to efficiently transactivate an E2F-responsive promoter to E2F-4. We found that the E2F-1 amino terminus directs chimeric proteins to the nucleus. Surprisingly, a short nuclear localization signal derived from simian virus 40 large T antigen could perfectly substitute for the presence of the E2F-1 amino terminus in these assays. Thus, nuclearly localized E2F-4, when overexpressed, displayed biological activities similar to those of E2F-1. Furthermore, we showed that nuclear localization of endogenous E2F-4 is cell cycle regulated, with E2F-4 being nuclear in the G 0 and early G 1 phases and mainly cytoplasmic after the pRB family members have become phosphorylated. We propose a novel mechanism for the regulation of E2F-dependent transcription in which E2F-4 regulates transcription only from G 0 until mid-to late G1 phase whereas E2F-1 is active in late G 1 and S phases, until it is inactivated by cyclin A-dependent kinase in late S phase.E2F was originally defined as a cellular activity required for the transactivation of the adenovirus E2 promoter by the E1A oncoproteins (34). E1A binds directly to pRB, the product of the retinoblastoma susceptibility gene, and to two pRB relatives, p107 and p130 (40). These proteins, often referred to as pocket proteins, are regulators of the E2F family of transcription factors. Five E2F family members have so far been isolated by virtue of their ability to bind directly to pocket proteins and by homology cloning (38). The affinity of the E2Fs toward pocket proteins and DNA is greatly enhanced by their binding to one of two heterodimeric partners, DP-1 and DP-2/3 (38). The DNA tumor virus oncoproteins E1A, human papillomavirus E7, and simian virus 40 (SV40) large T antigen all regulate E2F-dependent transcription by binding and dissociating the pocket proteins from the E2F heterodimers (4).The E2Fs are believed to regulate the correct timing of transcription of several genes whose products are required for DNA replication (dyhydrofolate reductase, DNA polymerase ␣, and thymidine kinase) and progression through the cell cycle (cyclin A, cyclin E, CDC2, E2F-1, B-Myb...