Expression of tyrosine aminotransferase activity in somatic-cell heterokaryons: evidence for negative control of enzyme expression.

Cells of the tyrosine aminotransferase (EC 2.6.1.5)-inducible line, HTC, were fused with those of the BRL-62 line, which contain little or no enzyme and are unresponsive to the usual steroid inducers. Histochemical examination of the resulting heterokaryons within 24 hr of the fusion showed them to have little or no enzyme and to be unresponsive to steroids. These experiments disclose that the observed negative dominance is universal in the fused cells and that such dominance occurs promptly after fusion, when loss of chromosomes has not occurred.