Genetics, Vol 144, 1087-1095, Copyright © 1996

INVESTIGATIONS

Subunit Interactions in the mariner Transposase

A. R. Lohe, D. T. Sullivan and D. L. Hartl
Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138

We have studied the Mos1 transposase encoded by the transposable element mariner. This transposase is a member of the ``D,D(35)E'' superfamily of proteins exhibiting the motif D,D(34)D. It is not known whether this transposase, or other eukaryote transposases manifesting the D,D(35)E domain, functions in a multimeric form. Evidence for oligomerization was found in the negative complementation of Mos1 by an EMS-induced transposase mutation in the catalytic domain. The transposase produced by this mutation has a glycine-to-arginine replacement at position 292. The G292R mutation strongly interferes with the ability of wild-type transposase to catalyze excision of a target element. Negative complementation was also observed for two other EMS mutations, although the effect was weaker than observed with G292R. Results from the yeast two-hybrid system also imply that Mos1 subunits interact, suggesting the possibility of subunit oligomerization in the transposition reaction. Overproduction of Mos1 subunits through an hsp70 promoter also inhibits excision of the target element, possibly through autoregulatory feedback on transcription or through formation of inactive or less active oligomers. The effects of both negative complementation and overproduction may contribute to the regulation of mariner transposition.

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