A mutant T7 phage promoter is specifically transcribed by T7-RNA polymerase in mammalian cells.

The phage T7 promoter/polymerase system is highly specific in bacteria in contrast to that observed in mammalian cells. A number of cell lines exhibit a considerable level of expression from the T7 promoter, even in the absence of T7-RNA polymerase. Here, we demonstrate that nuclear-factor-including components of the TFIID fraction, bind to the T7 promoter and inhibit transcription by T7-RNA polymerase. In order to increase the specificity of the promoter for T7-RNA polymerase and to abolish binding of nuclear factors, a novel strategy for the selection of randomly mutated promoters was established. The strategy involves adsorption of mutant promoters to HeLa extracts and binding of the free oligonucleotides to T7-RNA polymerase, cloning, and functional testing of the recombinants. After selection, the resulting mutant promoters showed an increase in specificity for transcription by T7-RNA polymerase.