Inducible transcription of the unrearranged kappa constant region locus is a common feature of pre-B cells and does not require DNA or protein synthesis.

Transcription of unrearranged kappa constant region (kappa 0) loci is dramatically induced in pre-B cells transformed by the Abelson murine leukemia virus when the cells are exposed to bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Transcriptional activity, detected both by accumulation of the 8-kilobase kappa 0 RNA product and by nuclear run-on measurements, is evident within a few hours after exposure to LPS and continues to increase over a 24-hr period. During this time, transcription of rearranged mu heavy-chain loci remains at the basal constitutive level. In accord with previous studies of the B-cell lymphoma 70Z/3, this transcriptional activation is accompanied by the appearance of a DNase I-hypersensitive site in the kappa enhancer region but not by any detectable hypomethylation of the locus. Moreover, the present studies demonstrate that induction of kappa transcription can occur in the absence of DNA or protein synthesis. These results have led us to propose a model in which an external signal such as LPS or a functionally equivalent lymphokine may initiate kappa transcription in pre-B cells by modifying or overriding the activity of an enhancer-specific factor.